


The Fine Print

by jci



Category: Make It or Break It
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-14
Updated: 2018-01-15
Packaged: 2018-08-22 08:12:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 22
Words: 81,902
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8279026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jci/pseuds/jci
Summary: A simple clause in the fine print of Emily Kmetko's scholarship changes everything, for everyone or: a rewrite of the entire series applying logic, the space/time continuum and what the show actually showed us about the girls abilities and work-ethic to the story with a healthy dose of epic, slow-burn Payson/Sasha on the side.





	1. Prologue

The pictures were damning to say the least. Marty recognized himself easily and Ronnie was perhaps even clearer. Tanner's PI was thorough. He winced as he flipped to the last photograph, there was absolutely no way he was going to let these pictures be leaked. He wouldn't let that happen, not to Ronnie and not to Kaylie.

"What is it you want?" he asked, eyes trained on the pictures, wondering where it all went wrong. Why he was arrogant enough to believe they wouldn't be caught eventually. His jaw twitched, wanting to reach over the desk and wipe that smug, satisfied expression off of Steve Tanner's face.

"Okay," Steve said, victory flashing in his eyes for a moment. "Just got off the phone with the Denver club," he said, his momentum building easily as he rose from his chair and smiled. "They are very interested in your services. And you won't be alone. You'll be taking Lauren, plus your fourth through seventh ranked girls. I've already talked to their parents they think it's a wonderful opportunity."

He paused to take a breath, building up the dramatic tension, obviously leading up to his exit, but Marty interrupted.

"And Emily," Marty said, more caught up in his own thoughts than what Tanner was spewing.

"Kmetko?" Steve said, with a condescending chuckle. "Marty, you seem to be missing the point."

Marty raised a hand. "Tanner, I'll be going to Denver, but I'll be taking Emily Kmetko with me. She has a scholarship contract with the NGO. She goes where I go."

"The girl who just beat out my daughter today, the reason all of this is happening in the first place, that's the one you want to take with you? Not Payson or," Steve hesitated before smiling wickedly, "Kaylie."

It took every ounce of will power Marty possessed to remain in his chair and not wring Steve Tanner's neck.

"It's not a matter of want," he bit out between clenched teeth. "The NGO has a contract with this girl. I agreed to coach her for the duration of her elite career. You're a lawyer, Steve, you know how these things work better than I do, so unless you want the NGO breathing down our necks at Denver…" Marty trailed off, finally getting his feet back under him. It was the truth. Emily's scholarship was contingent upon his coaching her and though he supposed she could try and find another coach to sponsor her scholarship, though that was highly unlikely.

Steve raised his hands in surrender. "She's not better than Lauren, you and I both know that."

"But she's a contender for the National team," Marty filled in, not wanting to get into a debate about who had the potential to be a better all around gymnast, "and will make the team surrounding Lauren that much stronger. You know how important that is."

"Done," Steve said, nodding in satisfaction, "But just so we're clear, at Denver, could you make sure Lauren goes in the top three?"

Marty looked away and closed his eyes, his stomach churning from what felt like agreeing to a deal with the devil.

"Thanks, pal," Steve said with a mocking grin and leaving the office.

His stomach lurched again and he took a slow deep breath to steady it. Marty looked back down at the pictures. They were explict, no doubt about that. It would be a national scandal, pop superstar Ronnie, wife of baseball player Alex Cruz has affair with daughter's gymnastics coach. It was a Lifetime movie waiting to happen. It would destroy Ronnie's marriage, whatever was left of it and worst of all, it would likely destroy Kaylie's career.

Leaving his girls just six weeks before Nationals would be horrible, but exposing them to that kind of scandal was unforgiveable. This was the lesser of two evils.  
Emily would be just fine. He would drive her back and forth to Denver if he had to, though it was unlikely she'd let him. She'd be more likely to take the bus. If he'd learned anything about that girl in the forty-eight hours she trained at the Rock it was she was fiercely independent. Two days in Colorado and she would go from a virtual gymnastics nobody to the number one girl at Denver Elite. Despite her new forty-minute commute, he imagined that news might lessen the blow of changing gyms.

The world was a crazy place, made even crazier by Steve Tanner's inability to simply allow his daughter to succeed and fail on her own merit.  
Lauren would remain under his guidance and hopefully he would be able to dissuade whatever instincts she had that would call this move a victory for her. She was a talented gymnast, but as a person she was approaching irretrievably spoiled. Hopefully he could push her towards the Olympic podium and instill some of the values her father failed too.

And Payson. That perhaps hurt the most. He convinced the Keelers two years ago to pick up their lives and move to Boulder, Colorado. Payson won the junior national championship in 2008, a year too young for Beijing, but all the gymnastics experts weren't thinking about Beijing, they were thinking about London. Now two years later she was the best gymnast in the country, poised to become National and likely World Champion. And now he was leaving her. Just before she would fulfill her potential.

Marty swallowed harshly, a fist clenching against his thigh. Payson would be okay. She was uncommonly strong with a level of mental toughness that amazed him on an hourly basis.

Mental toughness, however, was not Kaylie's strong suit. It was the mental game that kept her from reaching that next level as a gymnast and being abandoned by her coach, it might be too much for her.

He shook himself for being an idiot. Kaylie would be fine. He wasn't her father, no matter how many times he wished differently. And he was doing this for her. If he didn't leave, her family, her entire world, would crumble and her gymnastics career along with them and he would not allow that to happen.

With a sharp exhale, Marty stood from his desk, what would soon be someone else's desk and his eyes caught upon a photograph on the wall. It was taken at last year's nationals, Lauren, Kaylie and Payson, wearing their National team jackets, though it had little meaning in the year following an Olympics, with Payson's silver medal hanging around her neck. They were smiling widely, flush with the thrill of their first senior nationals.

Now, less than a year later, everything was different. He glanced around looking for a box to pack up some of his personal items, but then changed his mind. Steve Tanner engineered this insanity; he could come back and collect his things for him. He pulled on his jacket and left the office without looking back. His only thought was getting home and pouring himself a stiff drink or ten, then passing out.

Everything was going to change and he had no idea what would happen next.


	2. Chapter 1

"You know listening to other people's phone conversations isn't right," Payson said, frowning up at her ceiling sprawled across her bed while her sister sat at her desk ear pressed to the phone attempting to breathe silently.

Becca disconnected herself from the phone call, pushing the end button as lightly as possible so as not to alert the call's participants, namely her mother, that she'd been listening in. "Boring anyway, they're just talking about you and Houston and how much Helen Bates would love to have Mom in her book club. She hasn't actually come out and asked if we'd come to Houston yet, but you know that's coming in a day or two."

Payson rolled over and buried her face in a pillow. "We're not going to Houston, Becca."

Becca frowned at her. "Yeah, that's what Dad said after the first time you asked to move to Boulder and here we are."

"I don't want to train in Houston," Payson said, more to herself than to her little sister. "The Rock is a great gym. I'm the second ranked gymnast in the country, Kaylie's eighth. There's got to be a coach out there who's looking for a job."

"Right before Nationals?" Becca pressed, walking over to the window and peeking out of Payson's blinds. "The reporters are finally all gone. That was insane this morning."

Payson sat up and sighed. "Yeah it was. At least they hadn't heard Marty left, along with our number three and four gymnasts."

"Plus five through seven," Becca added helpfully.

"Right, our entire second flight," Payson reminded herself. She wasn't all that concerned about the loss of talent. Lauren was a great beamer, but not much else and Emily was raw and untested, though she obviously had a lot of natural ability. She was more worried about finding another world-class coach a little less than two months out from Nationals. Maybe Houston wouldn't be the worst thing in the world.

Becca sighed from the window. "When you make a million dollars can you get me my own phone line?"

Payson snorted, pulling on her sneakers. "Why would you want that? Then you won't be able to listen in on other people's phone calls," she teased lightly.

"Shut up," Becca protested.

"I'm going for a run. Be back in a little bit."

"Think about the phone line?" Becca called to her back.

Payson just raised a hand in acknowledgement and managed to slip out of the house without her mother calling her into the kitchen to talk about everything that went on in the last twelve hours.

The earplugs from her iPod pressing firmly into her ears, she moved out towards the end of the driveway, pulling one leg back behind her and then the other, stretching out fully, rotating her back and core muscles, rotating her ankles as the music pounded into her ears.

Her feet kept a steady pace as she approached Chautauqua Park's trail, the same trail she ran every morning. Her run was postponed this morning however with the dozens of reporters camped out in the front yard. Usually she let her mind go blank as she scaled the hills and valleys or visualized a new skill, but today was just a jumble of disconnected thoughts, everything coming back to one simple thing. She did everything right. Everything.

She trained hard, she focused, she gave up most carbs and fat and sugar, she moved her family a thousand miles, she had a stress fracture in her ankle, a knee that would likely need reconstruction after the Olympics, a herniated disc that sometimes made any movement at all painful and all for what? So her coach could walk out on her seven weeks before the biggest event of her life?

This was supposed to be her year. After finishing second at Nationals last year, thanks in large part to that herniated disc forcing her to downgrade her routines and then missing out on Worlds because her back specialist recommended a complete shutdown after Nationals, this was supposed to be her coming out party. This wasn't how it was supposed to happen.

Just twenty-four hours ago she was on top of the world or at least at the top of the Rock.

The in-house competition had little meaning in the scheme of things, but Marty wanted her to try out her new vault before they went to Boston. It new skill entirely and it would bear her name once she competed it internationally. Yesterday, she stuck it cold.

The vault went off without a hitch, as did the rest of her routines, aside from a wobble or two on beam, but the joke was on her. She dominated the competition, but winning meant nothing now that she lost her coach.

Payson felt the anger building again and was thankful she was approaching a steep incline, letting the adrenaline pump through her system, powering her up the hill. Marty Walsh was gone. Poof! Just like that. And he took Lauren with him.

Why would he take Lauren with him? Lauren was a good gymnast all-around, especially when she nailed her beam routine, but she'd never noticed any particular bond between her and Marty. And Emily, that explanation was easy enough, she was Marty's pet project, someone he could mold from start to finish, unlike the nearly finished product she was when she arrived from St. Paul two years ago.

So really the question was, why not her? Why hadn't he asked her to join him at Denver? It wasn't too far of a commute. He convinced her parents to move a thousand miles away from everything they knew, but he couldn't be bothered to ask her to commute forty minutes every morning?

It didn't take a genius to figure out Steve Tanner had something to do with the move. Maddy Wells, one of the juniors headed to Denver called the house earlier asking if Becca was going too. Steve Tanner was the one that extended her parents the invitation. So was this all because Lauren finished fourth at the in-house meet?

Payson rolled her eyes. If it was true, it was ridiculous. Had Steve Tanner bribed Marty or something? Lauren had already qualified for Nationals earlier that year. The placements were meaningless. Marty used them as motivation, but the judges wouldn't care. No one was going to hold a slip off of beam during a random competition against Lauren at Nationals. And yet something told her that she was on the right track. Lauren was her friend, but she was also a spoiled brat and she freaked out when Emily showed up.

She reached the top of the hill and inhaled sharply, the thin mountain air filling her lungs. Boulder really was a spectacular place to train. The high elevation kept her endurance at a level that far surpassed that of most other gymnasts. She had no intention of going to Houston, no matter how much Helen Bates badgered her mother.

Now she just needed a world-class coach to pop up out of the woodwork and take her to that next level.

Rolling her eyes at herself, Payson started back down the trail, feeling that anger build again. Marty was supposed to be her coach, they were supposed to go to London, together. He was always preaching about how the Rock was a family and that they had to work together because the only thing that would get them through the most difficult training in the world was if they did it as a team, if they leaned on each other.

Apparently that was just total crap.

Now that team was broken. It was only her and Kaylie competing at the elite level and Kaylie's focus had never been entirely on her gymnastics, especially not this last year or so. After last year's Nationals Kaylie stopped staying late, stopped upping her degree of difficulty and while she was still her friend, Payson lost some respect for her. Kaylie had a lot of potential she wasn't tapping into and that was something she couldn't understand.

Her feet hit with satisfying thwacks against the sidewalk, as she left the park and made her way towards home. A sudden twinge, followed by a dull ache in her lower back had her moving into the street where the asphalt would be kinder on her joints and her ridiculous herniated disc.

She smiled to herself and shook her head when she saw her father waiting at the door to the house, holding a water bottle out for her.

"Thanks," she said, taking a sip.

"You okay, kiddo?" he asked, studying her carefully.

Payson looked up at her dad and shrugged heavily. His arm went around her shoulders as they walked into the house together and she leaned into her father's side. He bent down and placed a warm kiss at the top of her head.

"I'll be alright, Pay. We'll figure it out," he said, reassuringly, but Payson knew this was one problem her dad couldn't just fix the way he could a scraped knee or a missed routine when she was little.

With one last reassuring squeeze, her father lifted his arm from around her shoulders and moved into the kitchen where her mother was preparing dinner.

Making her way to her bedroom to grab some clothes to change into after her shoulder, she saw her phone vibrating on her nightstand. With a sigh she checked it and there was her Twitter feed blinking back at her.

 **LoTanner:** _Gonna rock the beam at Denver Elite! Me n Marty r going to London '12!_

Payson huffed out a breath and shook her head. So much for keeping Marty's departure a secret, now the whole world knew.

 

* * *

 

He heard the car crunching up the rocky drive followed by the car door slamming. Then her voice, grating even at a mumble and much more so in real life than over voice mail, complaining about her heels getting caught in the path leading to his front door. He heard her knock over and over again at the solid oak of his door.

He simply stood in silence, lining his fishing rod, running the new line down the rod and opening the bail to tie a knot onto the reel.

Finally he heard her making her way around the back of the house, in his general direction.

"Mr. Belov," she called out.

Sasha spared her a glance, keeping his expression empty before turning back to his fishing rod.

"I don't appreciate being ignored, Mr. Belov. I've left several messages as have a few of my associates."

Sasha smirked to himself remembering the exasperated message MJ Martin left him practically begging him to call back Sheila, mostly so she would stop calling _her_. It was less than cordial and certainly not in any way persuasive, but he'd been amused by it nonetheless. The woman was persistent; he'd give her that.

"The reason I haven't returned your call, Mrs. Baboyan or those of your _associates_ is because I have no interest in your offer. I didn't last year or the year before and I certainly don't now," Sasha said, balancing the fishing rod on the picnic table behind him and taking up a hook.

"No interest?" Sheila said, in disbelief. "You're the greatest coach this sport has ever seen. Better than your father or Nicolai Kaboyi or Bela Karolyi or any of them and you're just out here gathering dust."

"Actually I'm out here fishing," he said, frustrated that the woman would not take a hint.

Sheila Baboyan, mother and manager of Kelly Parker, had been attempting to draw him back into competitive gymnastics on and off for a few years now. Every time she and her daughter alienated another gym, first Boston, then Seattle and now Houston, her voice would echo in his voice mail. This was the first time she actually showed up on his doorstep however and despite himself, he was intrigued.

"Kelly is a fine gymnast, Mrs. Baboyan and I'm sure you'll find another gym soon enough. I'm sure there are one or two you haven't totally alienated."

The woman cackled, actually cackled at his response and he turned to her, brow furrowed in derision. She was taking this whole wicked witch of gymnastics things a little too far.

"I've already found a gym for my Kelly," Sheila said.

Sasha grimaced and nodded at her. "Fantastic, now if you don't mind, I'm busy."

"Yes, I can see that… _fishing_ ," Sheila said, before smiling widely. "My ex-husband is fisherman."

"That's nice," Sasha responded disinterestedly.

"He taught me the key to fishing is having the right lure," Sheila said, her tone purposefully casual. Sasha saw through her game quickly enough.

"And what's your lure, Mrs. Baboyan?" he asked, unable to help himself. Perhaps if he indulged her a little she'd go away.

She was obviously thrilled at finally getting his full attention. "The twenty first century is an extraordinary time, full of marvelous things like cars that can tell you which way to turn and computers that can look up any information you need after just a few keystrokes."

Sasha raised an eyebrow impatiently and she seemed to take a hint. "The twenty first century is also home to social media, Mr. Belov. Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, where everyone can share everything about themselves with everyone else."

"Your point?"

"Yesterday there was an extremely interesting tweet from Lauren Tanner, formerly of the Rocky Mountain Gymnastics Training Center."

The Rock. While he had zero intention of getting back into the coaching game, that gym had intrigued him for years now. His old friend and rival Marty Walsh had built a powerhouse of a team leading up towards the London 2012 games. Then what Sheila said sunk into his mind fully.

"Formerly? Lauren Tanner left the Rock?" he asked, again curiosity getting the better of him. It was a loss for the club to be sure, but with Payson Keeler and Kaylie Cruz, Marty still had a strong team.

"Not just Lauren Tanner," Sheila said, pausing he supposed to try and build up the suspense of her reveal. "Marty Walsh took Lauren Tanner and his entire second flight of gymnasts to Denver Elite."

Sasha snorted. "That's ridiculous. Why would…"

Sheila shrugged. "Scuttlebutt is that size obsessed, toady father of Tanner's has something on Walsh. Not that it matters. The Rock is down a head coach and I'm offering you the best club team in America, the current 8th, 2nd and 1st ranked gymnasts in this country, three girls who will likely be on the Olympic team in London and all you have to do is say yes."

"No," Sasha said succinctly.

"No?" Sheila echoed, clearly in shock.

"No, Mrs. Baboyan. I appreciate the offer, but if I were to get back into coaching it wouldn't be by putting myself under the thumb of some power hungry mother-slash-agent-slash-publicist. No offense," he added with a shrug.

"None taken," Sheila, said, obviously aware of exactly who she was and how she came off to people. "That's not what I'm offering you. The Rock is a private facility with a board of directors. The coach runs the gym conjointly with the board appointed gym manager under the general oversight their board president."

"Thinking of getting into politics?" Sasha asked, still skeptical of her motivations.

"Absolutely not," she scoffed. "I'm Kelly's agent and head of KPE, I don't have time to play nice with the gym moms. Alex Cruz is president over there and he's welcome to the job."

"KPE?" he asked, not sure he wanted to know the meaning of the acronym.

Sheila rolled her eyes. "Kelly Parker Enterprises."

"Ah, of course," Sasha said, before shaking his head. "I'm sorry you wasted your time, Mrs. Baboyan."

Sheila snorted. "Go fishing, Sasha," she said, using his first name familiarly. "Think about it. I'm at the Cambria Pines Lodge and my flight leaves at noon tomorrow."

Sasha turned back to his fishing tackle as Sheila walked back out around the house. He heard the car door open and close and the engine turning over before she pulled a U-turn and went back the way she came.

It was a tempting offer, the most tempting offer he had since the Romanian national team had offered him his father's old job. The Rock housed two incredibly talented gymnasts, add to that the current National Champion and it certainly had Sasha thinking.

Kelly Parker was an excellent gymnast. The eighteen-year-old national champion was a confident all-around gymnast and could be depended upon to hit a routine when you needed her to. She peaked a year too late for Beijing and a few years too early for London, but she was very likely to make the Olympic squad, simply because consistency in international competition was the most valuable commodity of them all.

Kaylie Cruz was a dynamic natural gymnast with the ability to charm any audience she performed for, even at times the judges. It puzzled him why Marty hadn't pushed her harder, since she was capable of much more than her current performances would indicate, but the promise of untapped ability tugged at his coaching instincts. There was more to her than her smiles and cutesy routines he was sure of it.

Then there was Payson Keeler, plagued by injury the last couple of years, when he looked at her he could already see her standing on top of the podium in London. She had it all, difficulty, precision and the drive, but there was something else about her that drew him in. His mother, before she married his father, was a ballet dancer and from a young age, Sasha was exposed to more than one ballerina. That's how Payson Keeler looked to him, like a ballerina, though any gymnastics expert would likely laugh at his assessment. It was in the line of her neck, the drop of her shoulders, the flex of her wrists, and most importantly in her natural turn out and demi-pointe. Things his gymnasts in Romania always had in spades, things most American gymnasts lacked and what international judges loved. Combining her current abilities with the grace buried deep within her, Payson wouldn't simply be at the top of the podium in London, she would join the greats of the sport.

Sighing, Sasha laid his fishing line down on the table again and pulled his cell phone out of his jeans pocket.

"Yes, can I have the number for the Cambria Pines Lodge in Cambria, California?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One thing that always bothered me about the second episode of the series was that Lauren, in all her smugness, didn't shout from the highest rooftops that she was getting the hell out of Boulder, along with one of the best coaches in the country. Keeping silent about it just isn't something she would do.
> 
> It also struck my notice that Kelly Parker was looking for a new gym right around the time Sasha arrived at the Rock. In this little universe, Sheila jumped on the news that Lauren broadcasted to the gymnastics world and got on the first plane out to California. We're about a week or so ahead of "show time" so to speak because in my head Kaylie and Payson's little trip to Denver happened about a week post-Marty and Lauren's departure. There are also some little details here that will become important later on in the story! I plant the seeds early!
> 
> Again, this fic will be told solely from Sasha and Payson's point of views, but we most definitely will be checking in with all the characters and their storylines will be addressed, if not the focus of the plot.


	3. Chapter 3

Not everything goes your way all the time, Payson and it's how we act int those moments that shows the world who we truly are," her mom said, as her dad steered their station wagon into the Cruz's driveway.

"Mom, I know, please can we just drop it?" she asked, her head lolling back against the headrest in frustration.

She knew she was out of line earlier. She tried to clear her head, to focus and keep working towards her goals, but her irritation boiled over during practice. The gym was in chaos, kids running wild, coaches pulling out their hair just trying to do their jobs and no matter how hard she tried it was impossible to regain the focus she possessed only days before. She apologized to Pete, the assistant coach she reamed for not having three Olympic gold medals. He was fine about it and they got back to work on her squaring her hips, throughout her beam routine, which was really a ridiculous problem to be rearing its ugly head this close to nationals, but her parents had not stopped talking about her outburst since practice ended.

"Your mother and I just want you to prepare yourself for what's coming next, a coach's worth isn't measured by how many medals he or she won. Some of the best coaches in the world weren't elite athletes themselves. Vince Lombardi, the greatest football coach to ever live…"

"Never even played professionally," Becca and Payson finished in unison in the back seat.

Despite hailing from St. Paul, Minnesota, dedicated Viking's country, Mark Keeler was raised a Green Bay Packers fan by their Lombardi-worshipping Grandpa. And that translated into many life lessons relating back to the great coach and his philosophies on football that their dad referenced with predictable regularity. Payson shot Becca a grin and they both tried to stifle the laughter at their dad's expense, though a giggle or two escaped.

"Have I said this before?" Mark teased, as he parked the car.

"Only several thousand times, hun," Kim said, patting his leg lightly before climbing out of the car. "Holy crap! Where are Blake and Crystal?" she asked, making a vague reference to what Payson assumed was bad television from the 1980s.

Payson was pretty sure her parents had never been to the Cruz house despite living in Boulder for nearly two years. "Told you it was nice," Payson said, opening the front door.

"Nice," Mark said, indicating the understatement of Payson's assessment. "I've failed you as a husband."

"Shhh," Kim hushed him reassuringly. "We have a stackable washer and dryer."

Payson rolled her eyes at her parents' usual witty interplay. It was amusing when it was just the four of them, but out in public it was just embarrassing.

"Ronnie!" Mark called out as Kaylie's mom came towards them, a bright smile on her face. "Nice digs."

Payson smiled tightly in their direction before making a sharp left and climbing the stairs towards Kaylie's bedroom. She only hoped that Kaylie was still up for a trip to Denver. Despite her father's Vince Lombardi analogy, Payson wanted a coach who knew what it took to compete at the highest levels, someone who could understand her dream and traveled the road she was about to embark on. There was no substitute for that experience as far as she was concerned. Lombardi was the exception, not the rule.

Opening the door to Kaylie's miniature palace of a bedroom, she smiled. "Hey."

"Hey," Kaylie said, nodding towards her magazine, an ancient copy of  _ World Gymnast _ . "C'mere, look, this is Marty when he won the silver. Wasn't he cute?"

Payson ignored Kaylie's last question, having never considered their coach anything other than their coach. "He was amazing," she said, commenting on his gymnastics instead.

She looked down at the magazine where a picture of Marty at the 2000 Olympics, chalking his hands before a routine was featured next to a picture of him on the podium after the All-Around finals. Payson wasn't just a gymnast; she  _ loved _ the sport and knew a lot about its history. She read every book, memoir and biography she could get her hands on when she was younger and she recognized the other young man in the picture immediately. Now, if they were going to label someone as cute…

"Who's that with the gold?" Kaylie asked, cutting off her train of thought.

Payson inwardly rolled her eyes. How could Kaylie _ not _ know who that was? Sure, they were only seven during the Sydney games, but Payson remembered nearly every detail of that competition, aided by the old VHS tapes she made of the event which she watched over and over again for the four years leading up to the Athens games.

"That's Sasha Belov," she said. "He was the only person to ever beat Marty."

Kaylie nodded. "Yeah? Whatever happened to him?"

"I don't know," Payson said, wrinkling her nose. No one did. "He kind of disappeared," she said, leaving out the part about coaching the Romanian gymnastics program to ten medals, four of them gold at the 2004 Olympics in Athens.

Finally, not being able to hold it in anymore, she said. "So? Are we going to go to Denver?" It was the reason she insisted on coming to this meeting in the first place.

Kaylie smirked. "I thought you might chicken out," she said, rolling over and bouncing off her bed, grabbing her jacket.

"No way," Payson said, shaking her head with a smile. "Are you chickening out?" she asked, thinking that maybe Kaylie wouldn't want to risk getting her car taken away for driving all the way to Denver.

"No way," Kaylie said. "Let's go."

Leaving the house unnoticed was little trouble, but they raced out to Kaylie's car as fast as they could anyway. She felt a little like a spy on a top-secret mission, as they climbed into the car and Kaylie sped out of her driveway.

"Urg," Payson grumbled under her breath as Kaylie merged onto the highway. "I still can't believe we're in this situation. I mean Denver? The top girl at that gym didn't even qualify for Nationals last year and I  _ still _ don't understand why he would take Lauren with him. Emily was his project, that I get, but Lauren?"

Kaylie rolled her eyes, putting on some lip-gloss as she drove. "I know. She was  _ tenth _ last year."

Payson nodded in agreement. "And the only reason she was that high was because of her beam routine. She ate mat on bars  _ twice _ and stepped out on three of her four tumbling passes on floor."

"Maybe Marty's got a thing about fixer-uppers," Kaylie joked a little meanly, but Payson laughed despite that.

Marty abandoning them hurt. Payson knew if she found out why he left she would be able to move on. He took Emily and he took Lauren and left them behind. Emily, who had natural ability, but would need a lot of polish and Lauren who dreamed up stories about Kaylie simply to be given a rank she did not earn.

"And Lauren, accusing you of seeing Carter? How low can you go?" Payson said, looking out the window, expecting another quick rejoinder from Kaylie, but was met with silence. "Kaylie?" she asked, turning towards the driver's seat.

Kaylie sighed heavily. "Promise you won't freak out?"

Payson's jaw dropped. "You're kidding right?" she asked. "You and Carter?"

"For almost a year now," Kaylie said, quietly and Payson's jaw dropped even further.

Suddenly it all made sense. Since Nationals last year Kaylie's dedication at the gym was shaky at best. She put her time in, but only what was required of her and she hasn't upgraded her difficulty either, something that would be necessary if she wanted to improve upon her eighth place finish at Nationals from last year.

"You and Carter?" Payson repeated, shaking her head in disbelief.

"I'm in love with him," Kaylie admitted softly, eyes trained on the road.

Payson stared at her in shock. They were sixteen years old, how could Kaylie possibly know she was in love? Who fell in love,  _ really in love, _ at sixteen anyway? No one.

She held back her instinctive reprimand however and simply said, "Wow."

"Look, I know you don't approve," Kaylie said.

"No, I don't," Payson cut off whatever 'but' Kaylie was about to add. "You could have gotten suspended. You  _ would _ have gotten suspended if Emily hadn't covered for you." Then something clicked in her head. "Lauren and Emily knew?" Despite herself, she was a little hurt. Kaylie and Lauren were friends since they were babies, but Kaylie knew Emily for two days and told her, not Payson?

Kaylie shook her head. "I have  _ no _ idea how Lauren figured it out. I didn't tell her. But Emily saw us, Carter and me, kissing in his truck the other day, that's how she knew."

"She saw you kissing in his truck?" Payson smacked her hand to her forehead. "How could you be that careless? What if it was Marty? Or any of the other girls who would have just  _ loved _ to see you get kicked out of the gym?"

"I know. I know it was stupid and we're being more careful, I swear. I just…I really love him, Pay and when Lauren told Marty…" she trailed off.

Payson suddenly realized just how low Lauren sunk. "What a bitch," she said, "ratting you out like that."

"Thanks," Kaylie said.

Payson snorted. "I still don't approve. Boys are just a huge distraction, especially keeping it a secret, but you never betray a friend, not like that." Kaylie lapsed into silence and Payson sighed heavily. "You really love him that much?"

Her eyes still trained on the road Kaylie nodded. "I do."

"Then if that's what you want, I'm happy for you, Kaylie," she said, still not understanding, but resigned to it. Kaylie was her friend and if something made her happy, even if that something was a slightly raggedy, lanky gymnast named Carter, then she was happy for her.

"Thanks, Pay," Kaylie said, reaching for her hand and squeezing it tightly. "That really means a lot."

"Just to be clear, this doesn't mean I'm going to cover for you guys or anything. No 'I'm sleeping over at Payson's house' just so you can go hook up or whatever."

Kaylie smirked. "Wouldn't dream of it."

"I mean it, Kaylie," Payson said, but she was unable to keep the smile off her face.

"Sure, Payson, whatever you say."

* * *

 

Sasha stepped out of his rental car and surveyed the neighborhood. Who knew Boulder, Colorado had a district that could rival the Hollywood Hills? Popping his sunglasses up on his head, he watched the gigantic tour bus pull down the street, parking just before the driveway.

He shook his head at the gigantic photo of Kelly Parker pasted on the side of the bus. No matter how many times Sheila asked, he would not be stepping foot on that monstrosity.

The last thing he wanted was for the Rock parents to think he was a pawn of Sheila Baboyan's, out to promote her daughter at the expense of everyone else. He hated the politics of the sport, but he wasn't naïve about them.

"Are you sure they're expecting us?" he asked as she Sheila stepped off the bus and smirked at the large, manor like house that belonged to Alex Cruz.

"What? Don't you trust me, Sasha?" she asked, smirking.

He snorted. "About as far as I can throw you."

Sheila laughed and patted his bicep lightly. "You look pretty strong," she said. "Don't worry, you just stand there and look pretty, let me do the talking."

Sasha drew to a halt. "Stand there and…who do I look like David Beckham?"

Sheila stopped and studied him for a moment. "Yeah, you kinda do."

Laughing, Sasha stepped up to the door and knocked sharply.

The door opened quickly, a woman on the other side Sasha recalled almost instantly from his television screen twenty years before; she had that song, something about zippers. His brow knit trying to remember.

"Come in, come in, the meeting's about to start," she said, waving them in with a wide smile. Maybe Sheila hadn't lied, maybe they  _ were _ expected. He saw her eyes flicker over him with interest and appreciation and suddenly Sasha had an idea of how Marty wore out his welcome at the Rock.

"All right everyone," Alex Cruz's voice echoed into the main entryway from the living room. "We should get going."

"Yes, we really should," Sheila said. Sasha allowed her to precede him into the room, hanging back, watching the various reactions, some having no idea who she was, others narrowing eyes in instant recognition, then finally one woman, almost amused, shaking her head with a grim smile.

"Sheila," the woman said.

"Kim," Sheila said, nodding.

"This is a private meeting," Alex said, obviously trying to wrangle back control. "Who are you, exactly?"

Sasha rolled his eyes inwardly. It was as he originally thought; they were gate crashing this meeting. Perfect.

The woman Sheila greeted turned to the room. "Everyone, this is Sheila Baboyan, Kelly Parker's mother and manager," Kim said, emphasizing the word,  _ manager _ . Coming from her mouth the word sounded like the worst of profanities. "But like Alex said, this is a private meeting."

"For Rock families," Sheila finished for her. "Of course, I understand, but it so happens my daughter is looking for a new gym and we've decided that the Rocky Mountain Gymnastics Training Center is the right place for her to pursue her Olympic dreams."

"Oh, has she?" Kim said, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Indeed she has," Sheila said. Sasha couldn't see her, but he imagined that gigantic, sarcastic smile of hers was plastered across her face. "And so I drove right down here to sign her up and I even brought a gift."

Sasha cleared his throat. "I wouldn't exactly put it that way," he said, stepping forward. "But I did hear you were looking for a coach."

Silence reigned as every eye in the room fixed on his face, some obviously trying to work out where they knew him from, other's widening as they recognized him and then the room exploded, voices building and battling, rising over each other, expressing various levels of outrage. Sasha sat down in an armchair and watched the insanity.

"There is no way I'm allowing Sasha Belov to coach my daughters. The man is  _ insane! _ I saw a documentary once about what he used to make those Romanian gymnasts do."…."We can't let Kelly Parker and her mother run roughshod over this gym. Did we all forget what Steve Tanner was like?"…"Oh, so Kelly Parker is going to take  _ mydaughter's _ place in the top flight? That's ridiculous. We've been members of this gym for five years!"…"Who the hell are these people?" … "We've got every right to train at the Rock, especially since Kelly will only bring prestige to your roster."

He folded his hands together and leaned his elbows on his thighs. What was wrong with him? Why was he subjecting himself to this again? It would be worse than it was in Romania. This was a private gym, not state funded. He would be required to work with parents like Sheila Baboyan and these crazy people currently screaming at each other.

"Everyone sit down and shut up!" a voice rose over the rest. His head shot up and he saw the woman from before, Kim, standing the center of the room. The crowd slipped into a stunned silence. "Now look, we all want what's best for our kids. That's why we came here today, but this isn't productive. We need to talk about our options."

"That's right," Sheila jumped in, but Kim glared at her and she raised her hands in mock defeat.

"All of our options, especially," she stressed the word, "now that we have some. When Alex called this meeting our purpose, I think, was to figure out what to do next, but I don't think any one of us knew where to begin. Now we have a starting point, a qualified candidate who has expressed interest in the job," she gestured towards him. "I think we should hear what he has to say."

Sasha stood and nodded his thanks to her, as she ceded the floor, sitting on the couch and looking up at him expectantly. It was clear she wasn't convinced yet.

"Thank you, Mrs…." he trailed off.

"Keeler, Kim Keeler," she said as a man who he assumed was her husband took her hand.

Keeler. Interesting, he thought, filing that information away for later.

"The first thing you should all know about me, is that I'm my own man," he began. "While, Mrs. Baboyan informed me of your coaching vacancy, that is the extent of our affiliation. I've been out of this sport for nearly five years, but I never stopped following gymnastics. It's in my blood and coaching is what I am meant to do. You all are a part of one of the finest clubs in the country, but all of your girls have a long way to go and I believe I can help all of them become the best gymnast they are capable of being, if you let me."

His eyes surveyed the room. "I will tell you now, I do not have an open door policy in regards to coaching decisions, the only thing I will ever discuss with a parent is concerns about their daughter's health."

"What do you expect of the parents then?" someone in the crowd asked.

"Support of my decisions and support of your daughter's dreams, but the more pertinent questions is not what I expect of you all, but what I expect of the athletes, which is total dedication to the sport. There are several Olympic contenders training at your gym, several others who are serious NCAA candidates and one or two who could go either way. If I were your coach the gym would also be open to any gymnast who chooses to train there," he added, nodding towards Sheila, who smiled smugly. "And I can promise you, I will always be honest about an athlete's capabilities and I will push her to be the best she can be."

Sasha looked around the room and watched the parents nodding to each other, some murmuring, others looking contemplative. Then he looked up and saw a young girl, maybe twelve or thirteen entering the room with a plate of crackers and some sort of dip. She looked up.

"Whoa," she said, eyes growing wide as saucers. "Sasha Belov."

He was shocked the kid knew who he was, but she wasn't intimidated in the slightest. She simply set her plate down on the sideboard against the wall and continued to talk.

"My sister has poster of you on her wall," which explained the recognition, "She's going to die when she finds out she missed meeting you. She and Kaylie went to the movies or something. Oh my God," she said, pulling her phone from her pocket. "Can you take a picture with me?"

"Becca," Kim Keeler reprimanded with just her daughter's name and a look.

The girl wrinkled her nose and bit her lip. "Sorry," she said, sitting down next to her mother with a small pout.

"Well, if that's all you had to say, Mr. Belov, I say we put it to a vote," Kim said, her arm going around her daughter in an instinctively comforting fashion.

Alex Cruz cleared his throat, frowning deeply, obviously still a little upset that his meeting was hijacked so thoroughly. "The Rock's charter states that the Parents' Board has the authority to hire a head coach."

Kim looked around the room. "Well all the board members are here. Go for it."

Alex nodded, clearly still unhappy. "All in favor of hiring Sasha Belov as the new head coach of the Rock, raise your hands."

Sasha looked around, watching several men and women raising their hands, some with authority, others tentatively, others not until someone else with their hand raised glared at them. He was disappointed to note that he didn't have Kim Keeler's vote.

"Unanimous," Alex declared, lifting his own hand. He stepped towards Sasha and offered his hand. "Welcome to the Rock."

Not long after the meeting drifted to a close and he made his way over to where the Keelers were standing, talking softly to each other, their daughter's eyes trained on her phone.

"Mr. and Mrs. Keeler?" he said and they stopped talking, "I'm sorry to interrupt…"

"Not at all," Kim said, smiling. "Welcome to the Rock. This is my husband, Mark."

The tall man offered his hand. "Nice to meet you both and Becca," he said nodding towards the girl. "I have to say, I was a little disappointed I didn't get your vote just now," he admitted, rubbing at the back of his neck.

"My vote?" Kim asked, shaking her head. "Oh, the board vote? Mark and I aren't on the parents' board."

"No? You seem to have a lot of sway with these parents and with Payson being the top girl at the gym, I just assumed…"

"We try to stay out of the politics," Mark said, shrugging, putting his arm around his wife's shoulders. She rolled her eyes affectionately in what seemed to be a private joke between them.

A thought niggled at the back of his mind that began to develop as soon as Kim told the room to sit down and shut up. Now it was fully formed and pushing to the forefront. "Listen, would you mind if we met later tonight? I haven't even checked into my hotel yet, but there's something I'd like to discuss with you both, if that's alright?"

Sasha saw suspicion flash across their countenances. "I know you barely know me, but if my instincts are correct there is something we need to talk about tonight."

He didn't see any form of communication between them, no eye contact or anything, but somehow the pair in front of him came to an agreement.

"Sure, why don't you follow us back to the house and we can talk," Mark said.

* * *

 

"Bye, Kay," Payson said, climbing out of the car. She watched Kaylie drive down the street, before pushing her hands into the pockets of her Rock track jacket and trudging towards the house.

The meeting in Denver could not have gone worse. Now she knew why Marty left, because he didn't think she had what it took, that she wasn't good enough. After everything they'd been through together, it stung, but she was going to let it drive her, all the way to the Olympic podium.

That is if she could find a coach to replace him.

She looked at the driveway and frowned at the unfamiliar car parked there. Had she forgotten someone was coming to visit? Payson hoped it wasn't her Aunt Debbie and Uncle Ron and their four bratty kids.

"Mom, Dad," she called. "I'm home."

She glanced up, looking down the entryway all the way through the house into the kitchen, seeing an unfamiliar blond man seated at the table with her parents. She strode towards them and as she approached, recognition lit in her mind. Stopping at the archway, she swallowed before she whispered, "Sasha Belov." he looked up and their eyes met across the room.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, Becca bounced in front of her. "You missed _ everything _ , all for a stupid movie. They were all arguing and Mom was awesome. And we're  _ so _ not moving to Houston."

Payson watched her mother stand up. "Thank you, Becca," Kim said, eyeing her meaningfully.

Becca sighed and left the room, mumbling something under her breath about never getting to have any fun.

Her ability to speak finally returned to her as Becca pushed past her into the hallway. "What…what's going on?" she asked.

"Coach Belov is going to start coaching at the Rock on Monday," her dad said from his seat. "Why don't you sit down, honey?"

Payson nodded, taking several quick steps into the kitchen, her eyes never leaving the man she idolized since she was a little girl. "It's…it's nice to meet you," she said, still wondering if her imagination was playing tricks on her. Maybe she lost her mind and her parents and sister were just humoring her.

"Nice to meet you too, Payson," he said, extending his hand. She stared at it for a moment, before placing her hand in his, letting his fingers close around hers, their palms resting together, his grip firm and strong.

"You're going to coach…at the Rock," she said softly, drawing her hand away from his slowly. "You're going to coach  _ me _ ."

"That's the idea," he said, a small smile appearing on his face.

Payson found herself smiling as well.

"Well, you folks have a lot to talk about, so I'll say goodnight."

Payson watched him stand up and shake her father's hand and then her mother's before offering her a small smile and leaving the kitchen. She followed him with her eyes as he moved down the hallway and out the front door, before she leapt to her feet and followed him.

"Wait!" she called out as she slammed through the front door and down the path.

He looked up, closing the door to his car and moving back around it. "I just…" she trailed off, before finding her footing again. "I just wanted to say I'm really looking forward to working with you." She tried to pour every ounce of respect she had for him and his abilities into her words.

Sasha smirked at her and she tilted her head in confusion. "You girls didn't really go to the movies tonight, did you?" he asked.

Payson's eyes grew wide and her jaw dropped before it morphed into a self-deprecating smile. "We went to Denver," she admitted, "to try and get Marty back."

He nodded as if his suspicions were confirmed. "And what did he say?"

Payson shrugged helplessly. "He said he's not coming back." She wasn't about to tell Sasha Belov that Marty Walsh thought she wasn't good enough. It didn't matter what Marty thought, not anymore.

"I'm sure he has his reasons," Sasha said, "though I can't imagine they're very good ones." He paused before, smiling down at her. "I'm really looking forward to working with you too, Payson."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter. I have to tell you, it's harder than I thought it would be, working so closely with the original source material. Obviously sometimes exactly what happened on the show happens in this story and other times it veers away from it quite dramatically, but I'm doing my best.
> 
> Next time it's back to the Rock with some surprises in store for everyone!
> 
> Hope you enjoyed the chapter. If you did (or if you didn't) let me know, click that little review button and feed my addiction!


	4. Chapter 4

Standing in the car park, Sasha surveyed the exterior of the Rocky Mountain Gymnastics Training Center carefully. The Rock itself was unimpressive from the outside. It was nestled in the center of a corporate park, nondescript buildings lined the streets, parking lots mostly empty on this early on a Monday morning. His eyes fell on the parking spaces lining the edges of the main walkway.

_Reserved for Tanner. Reserve for Cruz. Reserved for Keeler. Reserved for Walsh._

He made a mental note to have two of those signs changed before eyeing the corner of the lot sheltered partially by some trees. Perfect. The airstream would be out of the way and yet his presence would be felt at all times.

Sasha briefly considered leasing a flat in the area or perhaps tapping into the ample reserves in his bank accounts and buying a house in Boulder, but the more he considered his options, the less appealing they seemed. If he had his way, the Rock would resemble the training facility he built his program in during his time at the Romanian head coach, complete with dormitories for the elite team members. Things were done very differently in the United States and judging by the nation's recent success, they were positive differences. Yet, he couldn't shake the need to be close to his gym.

Nicolai, his old coach lived in an apartment above the gym they trained in during Sasha's career and an Airstream would be the next best thing. It had the added bonus of likely freaking out the less dedicated gymnasts and tipping the scales either way for those considering whether they wanted to train with him.

Sasha smirked to himself; if he had to play up the more eccentric edges of his personality to get the results he wanted, so be it.

Taking out the key Alex Cruz placed in his hand two days before, he unlocked the gym doors, propping it open with a weight placed conveniently just inside the lobby. His eye caught on the dozens of trophies and photographs lining the walls of the main foyer. It bespoke of the reputation the gym was attempting to build, serious, dedicated and above all, victorious.

Stepping through the main doors, Sasha found what he expected. He knew Marty wouldn't work out of a second-rate gym, but this facility was state of the art. Well-maintained equipment, plenty of room to work multiple athletes on each apparatus, it was exactly what had all the gymnastics experts in the world raving about the Rock. He glanced sideways and saw a stairwell leading to a small balcony.

Taking the stairs two at a time he found they led to an office.  _His_  office. Much like the front hall, the office was dedicated to the Rock's many accomplishments in the short time the gym operated on the National scene. In the corner was a picture of the three Rock girls who made the National Team last year, Payson Keeler, the silver medalist, standing between Kaylie Cruz and Lauren Tanner, eighth and tenth respectively, but both outstanding on their strengths with a bronze for each, on floor for Kaylie and beam for Lauren.

Sasha would be lying if he didn't admit to disappointment at the news Lauren Tanner went to Denver along with Marty. He sensed she had the ability to become truly spectacular on beam and would have liked the opportunity to coach her, despite her reputation for being difficult.

In the end, it didn't matter. Starting today his team would be comprised of last year's gold and silver medalists and if his instincts were correct a young lady capable of much more than an eighth place finish.

He made himself comfortable at the desk which just days before belonged to his former friend and rival. Then he frowned, staring at the desk which abutted his, wondering if Kim Keeler gave any consideration to the offer he made just minutes before her daughter arrived home. He was encouraged that she asked for time to think it over rather than jumping at the chance to wield a powerful position at the gym. At the same time, simply for his peace of mind, he wished she agreed on the spot.

It was gut instinct, offering her the job of gym manager, but he had limited experience on the administrative side of gymnastics and could use all the help he could get, plus of all the people he encountered, if ever so briefly at the Cruz's home, she seemed like someone he wouldn't mind spending endless hours with cooped up in an office. Most importantly, however, it was obvious her main concern was the welfare of the girls, not the politics or living vicariously through her daughters' dreams. She was someone he could trust, he was sure of it. Now all he could do was hope she accepted.

Glancing up at the clock he saw it was nearing eight in the morning. The elite girls were scheduled to begin at eight, so he didn't have much time. Quickly, he reviewed the notes he took, unable to help himself as he sat uselessly in front of his television during the last five years.

Next to dozens of technical comments and possible routine upgrades he listed the major flaw for his three elite girls. It was these flaws he intended to focus upon in the lead up to the Olympic Games, just two years away. For Kaylie Cruz he wrote,  _Passion?_ The talent and ability were there, but it was obvious there were stores she was not tapping into and he had to figure out why. Beside Kelly Parker's name he scribbled,  _More_. She needed more everything, more difficulty on her events and a deeper connection to her gymnastics. And finally for Payson Keeler, a simple equation,  _Power + Grace = GOLD._ She had all the tools necessary to become one of the all-time greats and it fell to him to show that to her.

A disconcerting thought occurred to him and unconsciously he rubbed his knee. Spinning in his chair towards the large filing cabinet against the wall he rifled through the organized chaos of Marty's organizational system. Finally, he found what he was looking for; a thick folder labeled,  _Keeler, Payson – Medical._

A frown spread across his countenance and his jaw twitched as he read a detailed history of her injury woes dating back to a torn and repaired ACL as a junior, the same injury which ended his career to her current issues with a herniated disk in her back.

Sasha glanced up at the wall, finding a large annual calendar with a date circled in the middle of July. Nationals were just eight weeks away. He closed the file quickly and huffed out a breath. Realizing how much harder his job was about to become he leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling wondering how to approach it.

His thoughts were interrupted almost immediately as voices began to echo up from the floor below as well as the sound of feet climbing the office stairs.

"Knock, knock," Kim Keeler said, standing in the open doorway, a slightly ironic lilt to her voice.

He sat up and smiled wanly. "Mrs. Keeler," he said, "come in."

"Kim, please," she said, stepping inside and hovering uncomfortably in front of the gym manager's desk for a moment. "Mark and I discussed your offer and while I'm still not sure I'm the right person for the job, I'll do it."

His smile grew more genuine at her words. "Fantastic," he said, heaving out a sigh of relief, before his thoughts from just a moment earlier settled down upon him again.

"So what do you need me to do, point me towards a project," she said, rolling up her sleeves and glancing around the office.

Sasha nodded to the desk adjoining his. "First of all, I need you to sit down while I run an idea by you."

Her eyes narrowed ever so slightly as she sat down. "I'm not going to like this am I?" she asked.

Sasha's eyes closed as he shook his head. "I don't know, but at the very least, I know Payson won't like it."

* * *

It was unseasonably warm that morning and the sweaty tendrils plastering themselves to her forehead were evidence of that. Catching sight of the Rock as she rounded the corner, Payson allowed herself to shift into her remaining gear, increasing her pace to finish strongly. She saw her mother's car parked in their usual spot and inwardly shook her head. She couldn't believe Sasha Belov asked her mom to be the manager of the Rock. As far as she knew her mom didn't know anything about managing a gym, let alone an elite facility like the Rock, but she wasn't about to question the judgment of the best coach in the world. If he wanted her mom around, that was just fine with her.

Just as she rounded the bend into the parking lot, she heard a large engine roaring down the street. Pulling her headphones from her ears, she stood at the edge of the grassy ridge in front of the gym as she watched a large touring bus pull into the lot, taking up the vast majority of it and hiss to a halt.

Payson couldn't help the snort of amusement at the large image of her fiercest rival pasted on the side of the bus with Kelly Parker written in large flowing script next to it. Rolling her eyes she jogged the remaining few feet to the front door, but didn't make it inside before the squeak of the bus's door reached her ears followed by a saccharine sweet voice calling her name.

"Oh, Payson!" Kelly Parker said.

Catching the National Champion's reflection in the doors to the Rock, Payson schooled her expression from annoyance into stoicism before turning around to face her rival.

"Kelly," she said flatly.

"Isn't is amazing that I'm training here now?" Kelly asked, though she obviously needed no response and continued. "Instead of kicking your ass in competition, I'll get to kick your ass  _every day._ "

Payson just smirked in response and shook her head. "Welcome to the Rock, Kelly and good luck. You're going to need it." She allowed the tiniest hint of the same faux sweetness into her voice as she turned on her heel and went inside.

The gym was buzzing with clusters of young athletes and parents gathered together all whispering furiously. Payson shook her head and made towards the locker room to change into her leo, but was abruptly cut off when Kaylie flew out of nowhere and grabbed her arm, dragging her into an empty corner near the office balcony.

"Why didn't you answer any of my texts?" Kaylie demanded before shaking her head. "Do you believe this?"

Payson couldn't help the huge smile that tugged at the corners of her mouth. "I know, isn't it great? We just went from having no coach to having the greatest coach in the world."

Kaylie rolled her eyes. "Whatever. I'm not talking about him. I mean can you believe Kelly Parker is going to train here?"

"Who cares, it's Sasha Belov," Payson said, confused as to why Kaylie had such a problem with it. Kaylie barely registered on Kelly Parker's radar and all their problems were solved.

"You're not nervous? I mean she did beat you last year."

Payson shrugged. "She beat me because I had to downgrade on every event except bars thanks to my stupid back. I've been training harder than ever and she's been going to movie premieres and club openings. As far as I'm concerned she can train wherever she wants."

Her mouth dropping open in disbelief, Kaylie shook her head. "You're kidding right?"

"No," Payson said. "I'm not scared of Kelly Parker. The only thing I'm concerned with right now is showing Sasha Belov what I can do."

"And you'll get your chance to do just that," a clipped British accent said from above them. Payson and Kaylie looked up to see their new coach standing on the raised platform.

She smiled sheepishly at him while he just shook his head and looked out onto the rest of the gym.

"Ladies and gentleman, if I could have your attention please. All parents into the viewing area, the floor will no longer be open during practice time."

A disgruntled murmur went up through the crowd, but Payson and Kaylie looked at each other impressed. The Rock parents were notorious for interfering with Marty during practice and it was nice to see that this new coach was nipping that problem in the bud right from the start.

"Now, if all Level 10 and Elite girls could gather 'round, the rest of you are dismissed for the remainder of the day. Our new gym manager Mrs. Keeler will be posting a new schedule by this afternoon which will begin tomorrow."

More than half of the athletes on the floor, most looking thrilled at being granted a day off, moved away leaving just the highest caliber female athletes currently training at the Rock.

"Now then," Sasha began to address the fifteen girls standing in a semi-circle around the office platform. But before he could continue, the door opening and slamming shut drew everyone's attention.

Kelly Parker strutted in, her signature buns secure at the top of her head.

A murmur went through the crowd and Payson rolled her eyes.

"Miss Parker, you're late" Sasha barked, effectively cutting off the whispers of the small group of girls. "Practice begins promptly at eight on weekdays as I informed your mother yesterday. You'll do an extra round of conditioning."

Kelly's mouth dropped in affront, but quickly snapped closed at the expression on Sasha's face that dared her to object.

"Excellent," he said, nodding in satisfaction. "Now that we're all here, though I've met one or two of you before, I'd like to introduce myself and give you a sense of my expectations."

Payson focused her attention entirely upon him, studying every twitch of his jawline, every blink of his eye. This was the man who would take her to the Olympics.

"You are all very special," he began lowly. "You've chosen to do something few people are capable of. Look at each other," he instructed.

She hesitated, not wanting to look away and to miss something important.

"Go on, look," he said, urging them on.

Her eyes flickered to Kaylie quickly and then to her other side where Kelly was still pouting.

"No one but your peers can understand what it takes to become the best gymnast in the world.  _No one_ ," he emphasized, pointing directly towards the parents' viewing area. "Which is why you need each other, but mostly, you need me."

Payson felt her stomach flip a little at his words. She knew she needed him, more than anything one else in her life, she needed a coach to achieve her dreams, but looking at him in that moment sent a small shiver down her spine. She inwardly shook herself, refocusing her mind on his voice.

"I read the Rock's Athlete's Contract and frankly I find it a waste of time. I have a few simple rules: work as hard as I do, care as much as I do, sacrifice as much as I do, you will live, breathe, eat, sleep, breathe, gymnastics and nothing else. We have only forty-nine days until Nationals and you will spend every waking moment of it, in this gym, together."

Payson felt Kaylie tense next to her, but she kept her eyes trained on him as they flickered over the small group. Finally his gaze met hers briefly before moving away. "Any one of you not willing to sacrifice your blood, sweat and tears to achieve excellence should leave."

He paused, letting his words settled upon them. No one moved a centimeter.

"We begin right now," he said. "You have the morning to refine your current routines and then I will be holding evaluations. Tomorrow morning, the real work begins. I understand there are three members of the current Women's Senior National Team training here. Kelly, Payson, Kaylie, I assume you all know the proscribed National Team warm-up?" he asked, eyeing each of them quickly.

"Yes," Payson said, when no response seemed forthcoming from the other girls. The National Team warm-up was an elite conditioning and stretching regime developed by Bela and Martha Karolyi at their NGO training facility in Houston. Payson begged Marty to implement it at the Rock when she first arrived, but he had his own program he wanted to use.

"Fantastic," he said. "You girls will lead your teammates through the warm up today. We will begin each practice with it every day. By the end of the week you should all have it committed to memory. Again, you have the morning to work on any problem areas and then after lunch, you'll show me what you can do," he finished with a nod in Payson's direction, echoing her words from just moments before.

"This is insane," Kaylie muttered as they all walked towards the floor to begin. "Eat, sleep and  _bleed_  gymnastics."

"He's right. Nationals are just seven weeks away," Payson countered. "We don't have time for anything else or  _anyone_ else."

"You promised you wouldn't lecture me," Kaylie whispered.

Payson snorted. "No, I didn't."

Kaylie continued on as if she hadn't said a word. "Besides, our new coach thinks our athlete's contracts are a waste of time, which means, no more no-dating rule."

"I don't think that's what he meant," Payson muttered, rolling her eyes at Kaylie.

She shrugged. "That's how I'm choosing to interpret it."

"If you two are done chatting, could we get started? I have to do two of these," Kelly Parker broke into their conversation. The other girls were lined up and waiting for their instruction.

"Let's do this," Payson agreed.

* * *

It was comforting to know that despite being out of the gymnastics world for five years, he still knew what he was looking at, even if he was limited to the television screen and some Youtube videos.

All morning he watched the girls train, feverishly running through their routines, pushing themselves as close to perfection as possible. It was a godsend that the Rock had several very capable assistant coaches at hand to confer with and that they all had a decent rapport with the athletes. Several girls were obviously pulling out unpolished, but impressive, tricks to catch his eye, but through the assistants he instructed them to complete only competition ready skills and nothing else.

After lunch he ran through the dozen level ten gymnasts who currently trained at the Rock. They were all talented and one or two had the potential to move up to the elite level. He recognized nerves in most of their routines, but for the most part they were extremely well trained. Despite himself, he had to give Marty credit. He'd done a great job with his team.

As the final Level Ten dismounted the uneven bars, he scribbled a few final notes before turning around. "Elite girls, next," he said, nodding towards the three girls stretching silently in the center of the floor, waiting their turn.

"We'll start on floor," he said, nodding to Tara, the gym's resident choreographer to prepare the girls' music.

He watched each girl run through her routine and Sasha couldn't help the smile on his face. There was room for improvement, but at the same time he knew he was looking at the three best gymnasts on floor in the United States. Kaylie was a charming performer, Kelly's tumbling was flawless and Payson's new routine was phenomenal. His smile fell however as she finished her final tumbling pass landing a little short, shuffling her feet to cover the small stumble. That disk was flaring up, he could tell and his mind wandered back to the file sitting on his desk upstairs.

As they moved to the vault, his concern grew and he knew his earlier instincts were the right ones. Vault was the weakest event for both Kelly and Kaylie, but it was easily the strongest for Payson. The two other girls performed beautiful Yurchenko style vaults with one and a half twists. They would receive high execution scores, but their start values were too low to make a real impact on the international scene. He intended to upgrade both of them to a double twist, possibly before Nationals if they could land it consistently in training.

Payson's vault, however, was another story entirely. Marty had her competing a handspring onto the vault with a double twisting forward somersault off. A risky vault, which had never been landed in international competition by a woman, it had a blind landing and the twisting action made it extraordinarily dangerous, especially for a gymnast with a bad back and a history of knee issues. If his old friend were in the gym right now he'd strangle him for encouraging her to attempt the vault, let alone compete it. She landed it beautifully, her spatial awareness placing her perfectly in the center of the landing lane, knees bending to soften the impact just slightly. Thought the era of the perfect ten was long over, he was at a loss to see where the judges would deduct from it.

He moved the group over to bars and walked next to Payson as the other girls chalked up.

"How's your back?" he asked, matching her stride.

"Fine," she said, glancing up at him sideways. "Why?"

"Just checking, nice vault," he said, nodding towards the chalk bowl, indicating she should prepare for bars.

Bars were impressive, especially for Kelly and Payson. Kaylie's routine needed upgrading, particularly the dismount, a double pike just wouldn't cut it, but all three were clean workers, toes pointed, and legs straight and pasted together. His eyes narrowed a bit when he saw Kelly's elbows bend slightly during a full pirouette on the high bar, but beyond that Sasha was impressed.

The final event of the day, beam, wasn't even close. The routine Kaylie performed was obviously the reason her National Team ranking was so low. She lacked the confidence and self definition required on the most challenging of all the gymnastics apparatuses. Beam required a level of focus she did not seem capable of, at least not yet.

Despite the obvious flaws however, she seemed satisfied with the performance and high-fived Payson her way to the mat. Sasha frowned down at his notes and then nodded for Payson to begin.

Her routine was jammed full of difficulty. He'd never seen anything like it from any gymnast. Sasha quickly calculated the D-score as she combined element after element before dismounting with an Arabian double front and standing tall, saluting the non-existent judges.

"Wow," he heard a small voice next to him whisper. He turned and saw Kelly Parker staring at Payson intently.

"Okay," he said, making a show of distraction. "Show me what you've got, champ."

Kelly stepped to the beam and performed the same routine she competed at Nationals the year before, the same routine that clinched the title for her. It was good, world class even, but as she dismounted with her double pike and saluted, it was clear, despite the lack of judges and scores, who won the day.

Sasha nodded to the girls. "Very good, ladies. Stretch out and cool down. I'll see each of you separately before we wrap up for the day.

* * *

She could barely feel the ground beneath her feet. She didn't need scores or judges to tell her what her eyes could plainly see. Two months out from Nationals she just wiped the floor with her closest competition. Payson's eyes shifted towards the parents' viewing area and then she shook her head, realizing her mother was up in the gym office, getting herself organized.

"You were awesome, today, Pay," Kaylie said as Kelly followed Sasha upstairs to have their conference.

"So were you," Payson told Kaylie. "Tomorrow why don't you stay late with me?" she suggested. "I bet we could turn that two and a half punch front tuck into a two and a half punch front layout."

"I can't," she said, as her eyes drifted over to the viewing area and then around them, obviously to make sure they wouldn't be overheard. "I have a date with Carter," she whispered. "It's our ten month anniversary and he wanted to do something special."

Payson tried to look excited. "Wow, ten months, that's a long time," she said with a nod.

If Kaylie noticed her lack of enthusiasm she didn't say anything. "I know. He said he has a present for me and I can't wait to see what it is."

Payson had a weakness for stupid comedies and as a result, her mind drifted to the gutter. She laughed a little and Kaylie looked at her quizzically. She just raised her eyebrows twice suggestively and Kaylie's jaw dropped.

"Not like that, Payson," she insisted, though she blushed a bit.

"Right," she said, finishing up her core stretches and standing.

Kaylie opened her mouth to retort, but Sasha's voice echoed down from the platform. "Kaylie, you're next."

Payson watched her friend jog toward the office, passing Kelly Parker on her way down.

"Nice job today, Keeler," Kelly said, joining her in her cool down stretches.

"You too," Payson offered. Kelly knew she was the winner today, but Payson didn't feel the need to rub it in. She'd save that for when she officially beat her at Nationals.

"That vault is insane," Kelly added and Payson narrowed her eyes trying to guess the other girl's game. Her tone wasn't the least bit sincere. "Why didn't you compete it last year at Nationals?"

Payson shrugged. "It wasn't competition ready yet?"

"Right." Kelly nodded. "It didn't have anything to do with your back did it?" she asked. "I mean a vault like that, you could injure yourself pretty seriously."

She rolled her eyes. "My back is fine and if you failed to notice, my insane vault has a 1.4 DOD advantage over yours. Once I land it at Nationals and then again at Worlds this year, it'll be named after me." She stooped straight down to the reigning champion's level, unable to stop herself.

"We'll see," Kelly said with a shrug before standing and moving off to the locker room.

"Payson," Sasha called for her from the office.

She passed Kaylie on the way who looked a little shaken.

"Good luck," Kaylie muttered under her breath. She was clearly unhappy with how the meeting went.

"Thanks," she said, quickly jogging up the stairs.

Sasha looked up from his desk and nodded to the chair opposite him.

"Where's my mom?" she asked, taking a seat. She smiled, seeing that her mother already lined her desk with several family photographs.

Sasha waved his hand vaguely in the air. "She ran home to check up on Becca. Something about making sure she hadn't burned the house down."

Payson laughed lightly. "Becca tends to get into trouble without ever meaning to," she explained.

He hummed his agreement and smiled at her, before placing his clipboard on the desk and sighing heavily. "You were phenomenal out there today, Payson."

"Thank you," she said, her smiling growing, before biting her lip self-consciously. "I've worked really hard."

Sasha nodded. "It shows. If Nationals were today, barring any silly mistakes, you would be the clear favorite to win it all…."

She noticed his voice trailed off and her stomach sank in trepidation. "But…" she supplied for him.

His mouth pressed into a firm line as he reached out and picked up a file, handing it over to her. "I read your medical history this morning and I discussed it with your mother as well."

Payson's jaw dropped in outrage. Suddenly, Kelly Parker's questions about her back made sense. She obviously saw the medical file sitting on Sasha's desk and made the obvious leap.

"I'd appreciate it if I was included in any discussions like that," she bit out, her eyes narrowing at him.

Sasha's eyebrows shot up at her tone, which she immediately regretted.

"Sorry," she mumbled, looking away.

"No, you're right. You probably should have been there," he admitted. "What's done is done though and your mother and I agreed. She also spoke to your father and he's on board as well."

Payson shook her head, the sinking in her stomach suddenly shifting into a heavy knot, twisting and churning painfully. "On board with what?"

"Tomorrow morning you're scheduled for surgery to repair your herniated disk."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you see that coming?
> 
> One thing that STILL bothers me about Payson's injury was that a herniated disk is an easily fixed condition. It's an OUTPATIENT procedure with a recovery time of less than three weeks. I know elective surgery is a tough decision, but really this is an easy one. If Sasha was the coach MIOBI purports him to be, he would have been on top of Payson's injury situation immediately and done something about it. Let me know what you think!


	5. Chapter 5

For the first time in a very long time, years even, Payson woke up totally pain-free. Two and a half weeks post-surgery, earlier than her surgeon predicted and nothing, not one ache, no soreness, just perfect flexibility and no pain.

She knew it was a little screwed up, being upset that she was pain-free, but the only thing her comfort meant was that her back was fixed by a surgery which would keep her out of serious training for nearly five weeks leading up to Nationals. There

wouldn't be enough time between her clearance from the doctors and the start of competition to train and her dreams of the 2010 National Championship were over and any chance she had at attending the World Championships in the Fall.

It was all Sasha Belov's fault. She didn't know how he did it, but somehow he completely won over her parents in a matter of hours. As far as they were concerned, the man walked on water. All they could talk about was his concern for her health and how refreshing it was for a coach to put her well-being before her medal count.

Well, screw that. He said so himself. She was poised to dominate at Nationals and win at Worlds. She begged and pleaded to put the surgery off until after the World Championships, but neither her parents nor Sasha budged. It had to be now. He found a surgeon who spoke in medical gibberish, talking about inflammation of her disk and the potential for major injury. Something about a lumbosacral fracture, which sounded like total bullshit to her ears, but totally convinced her parents that surgery wasn't just necessary eventually, but immediately.

Her back felt fantastic and it was worse than any pain she ever endured.

Sighing heavily and rifling through her drawers for a pair of shorts and a tank top, she stared, longingly at the pile of leotards stacked neatly on the other side of the drawer. She slammed it shut and pulled off her pajamas, replacing them with the workout clothes, wishing all the while it was a training leo instead.

Payson couldn't figure out Belov's angle. It was possible Kelly Parker's mother had him in her pocket. That didn't make sense though, since he hired her own mother as gym manager. Unless that was just to lull her parents into a false sense of security. Yet, her instincts told her that she was way off base.

The Sasha Belov she knew, at least from the books she read and the footage she watched would never be anyone's pawn. That is, unless, his entire image was a total sham. That was a horrible thought.

Her stomach twisted at the idea of the man she looked up to her whole life not living up to her expectations of him. She didn't expect him to be perfect. She just didn't expect  _this._

"Let's go, Pay," her mother called from the main hall, jingling her keys meaningfully.

That was the other thing. He insisted she go to the Rock every day and torture herself by watching everyone else train, while she was relegated to the sidelines. The only thing she was allowed to do was get her heart rate up on the elliptical machine and lift very light hand weights. No high impact exercise and certainly no apparatus training.

"Payson," she said again, her voice sharper this time.

"Be right there, Mom."

* * *

She took out her anger on the elliptical machine. By the time she came out of the annex, drenched in sweat, hair from her ponytails sticking to her neck, the gym was in full swing. Gone was the total chaos that reigned while they were without a coach. If anything, things were running more smoothly than when Marty was in charge. Her mother's new schedule avoided the overcrowding they sometimes encountered in the past, especially during the Level 10 and Elite training hours and without the parents on the floor, the gym seemed much less claustrophobic, if a room the size of an airplane hanger could ever be so.

Coming in through the back door by the annex, she saw Kelly Parker racing towards the vault at full speed, a double twisting Yurchenko.

"What do you think, Payson?" Her voice set Payson's teeth on edge. "I've upgraded since Worlds."

"You had a form break in your legs off the horse, at least a tenth of a point," Payson shot back. "You shouldn't just chuck skills for the sake of upping your DOD, Kelly."

"I agree," a voice interrupted from behind her, a deep and distinctly British voice. "Kelly, you'll do the one and a half until we can focus on the upgrade in the pit. No chucking skills in my gym."

Payson's shoulder's stiffened. She trained her eyes ahead of her and walked away, though really she had nowhere to go.

"Payson." A moment later he was standing in front of her, blocking her path. "I'd like to talk to you up in the office."

Frowning, she crossed her arms over her chest and looked away, refusing to meet his eye. "I'm busy."

One of the Level 10 girls training nearby gasped at her blatant show of disrespect. She never spoke to a coach that way before, other than when she yelled at Marty on the floor at Denver Elite. She didn't think that counted, though.

"My office, now," he said, turning away from her, not giving her the chance to retort.

She had two choices. She could defy him, stay out on the floor with nothing to do and watch pathetically as everyone else trained or she could see what he wanted. Maybe he wanted her to have a lobotomy this time. That would keep her out of competition forever.

Glancing over at the beam where Kaylie was training the new double flic-flac to layout Sasha added to her routine, she sighed in resignation.

Lobotomy. At least then she wouldn't know about the upgrades everyone else was adding to their routines.

Trudging up the stairs to the office, she was grateful to see her mother wasn't there. Her mom wouldn't hear the lecture she was about to get about being snarky with her teammates and insubordinate to her coach, which meant there would be no repeat of that lecture all evening at home.

Sasha was standing at the filing cabinet behind his desk, digging through it like a madman, folders were askew and several found their way to the floor, causalities of his search.

"Look, I'm sorry,"

"Found it." He brandished a folder high in the air. Turning towards her, he nodded towards the chair opposite his desk. "Have a seat."

She tried again. "I'm sorry,"

He cut her off with a wave of his hand. "For snapping at me? Don't be. I fully expect it to happen again, likely with language much worse than that if we're going to work together for the next three years."

Payson opened her mouth to respond, but no sound with forthcoming. She had no idea what to say to that. He expected her to bitch at him?

"Have a seat," he repeated and this time she followed his direction.

"So if I'm not here to get yelled at, why am I here?"

"How's your back?" He did that a lot, totally disregarding what a person said to him and carrying on whatever conversation he wanted instead.

Payson narrowed her eyes and took a deep breath to contain her annoyance. "My back is perfect."

"No pain, soreness, anything?"

"It's great," she said from between clenched teeth.

He rubbed his hands together vigorously and smiled at her. "Excellent, then we can get started."

She was almost afraid to ask. "Get started on what?"

His smile widened. "On your training plan."

"But I can't train," she said. "The doctor said nothing high impact for at least another two weeks."

"The beginning of your training plan is not high impact." He offered her a piece of paper from the file on his desk.

Payson eyed him carefully before taking the paper from him. "Miss Viola's Ballet Academy. You're kidding, right?"

"Do I look like I'm kidding?"

He didn't. His jaw was set, his mouth drawn in a firm line, eyes burning into hers, he was dead serious.

"Well, either you're kidding or you're completely crazy," she said. "I don't do ballet."

"You do now," he said, standing from his chair. "Your first lesson is Monday morning. Yoga starts on Tuesday."

Payson's mouth opened, but she was unable to formulate a response.

Sasha smiled in a self-satisfied sort of way. He nodded, taking her silence as tacit acceptance of his training plan. "Glad we could have this talk," he said, standing up and leaving the office.

She watched him disappear out the door then followed his sandy blonde hair as he moved by the office window down and out to the floor.

She wasn't sure how long she sat there, stunned, staring at the paper in her hand.

It was worse than a lobotomy.

"Ballet," she whispered, "and yoga."

She was so screwed.

* * *

"And now he wants me to go to ballet class," Payson complained as she frowned into her strawberry-mango juicer.

After training, though Payson hesitated to call it that since all she did all day was ride the elliptical machine and watch everyone else train, Kaylie suggested a Spruce Juice fix. They both needed to vent and it was best done at their favorite hangout.

Kaylie grimaced. "Didn't you do ballet when you were little?"

"I was four," Payson said, huffing. "And yoga? Who does he think I am?"

Kaylie shrugged helplessly. "Maybe he got us mixed up, because all he keeps talking about adding these insane moves to my routines. He wants to replace the double back in my floor routine with a double arabian."

Payson grinned, trying to be supportive, but she couldn't quite muster up sympathy for Kaylie. Sasha was upgrading Kaylie's routines, helping her get better. She would kill to trade places with her.

"Hey, isn't that Lauren?" Kaylie asked, eyes narrowing at a group of girls walking into the patio area wearing the navy blue and red warm-up jackets of Denver Elite.

"Yeah, that's here," Payson said, squinting to get a closer look, "and Emily too."

"And half a dozen of her new Denver Elite minions," Kaylie practically snarled. "Who does she think she is, this is our place."

"Well, she used to be part of  _our_ ," Payson said, motioning between them.

"Happy birthday, Lauren," one of the Denver girls called, as she and another girl passed around smoothies.

Kaylie crinkled her nose. "That's right, it's Lauren's birthday."

Payson felt her stomach clench uncomfortably. "I kind of feel bad. I mean we always used to celebrate our birthdays together."

"Are you girls ready for an awesome night?" Lauren's voice echoed from the other side of the patio. "First my Dad is going to treat us all to dinner at Le Privilège and then we are going to par-tay, at Blast Off."

"What's Blast Off?" Kaylie asked and Payson shrugged.

"It's a party," a voice said from behind Payson's back.

Payson rolled her eyes. Of course Kelly Parker knew about a party. It infuriated her even further. While the bun headed bitch spent her time going to parties and night club openings Payson was training. It was all for nothing. Kelly Parker would repeat as National Champion and there was nothing she could do about it.

"What are you doing here?" Payson said, her annoyance clear.

"I'm getting a smoothie," Kelly said, rolling her eyes. "Duh."

"What kind of party?" Kaylie asked, her eyes still fixed at the table where Lauren and her new friends were sitting.

"A key party," Kelly said, pulling a flier from her bag. "I just ran into a guy outside. He was handing them out."

"We should go," Kaylie said, grabbing the piece of paper from Kelly's hand and studying it intently.

Payson rolled her eyes. "We are not going to a keg party."

"Why not? We both need to blow off some steam and this is the perfect way to do it."

"This is not the perfect way to do anything. What if we got caught?"

"By who?"

Payson raised her eyes to the sky and shook her head. "Our coach," she said. "Sasha would kill us if we went to a keg party."

Kelly scoffed, inviting herself to their table and sitting down. "Like he'd care either way if you went, Keeler. You can't train."

"She does have a point," Kaylie said and Payson gaped at her in outrage. "Besides who would tell him?"

"Her," Payson said, nodding towards Kelly.

Kelly tilted her head in acknowledgement of the truth in her statement. "But if I went with you…" she trailed off.

"You want to go to a party, with us?" Kaylie asked, in disbelief.

"Well we're teamies now, aren't we?"

Payson snorted and stood up. "You two have a good time then. Get drunk. It's not like you're trying to make the Olympic team or anything."

As she walked out, she shot Lauren and her cronies the nastiest look she could manage. Slipping through the gate of the Spruce Juice's patio, she immediately felt bad for stomping out like she did, for taking her anger out on Kaylie, who didn't deserve it, but she wasn't going back and she definitely wasn't going to a keg party.

"Hey there," a male voice called as she walked down the street towards her house. "You are cordially invited, biggest kegger of the year, music and all the beer you can drink." He shoved a flier into her hands and winked at her.

Rolling her eyes, she kept walking. Then about half way home she broke into a run, crumpling the flier in her fist.

* * *

Her cellphone buzzed on her nightstand and her hand shot out from beneath her covers before it could vibrate off the edge and onto the floor.

Pulling the phone under the covers with her, she squinted at the screen. It was Kaylie calling. Her sleep fogged mind tried to understand what that meant. Kaylie was at Blast Off and it was late at night. That could only mean one thing. She was in trouble.

Suddenly wide-awake, Payson accepted the call. "Hello?"

"Keeler?"

It wasn't Kaylie. It was Kelly Parker. Why was she calling from Kaylie's phone?

"Yeah, Kelly, what's up?" she asked, sitting up in bed, already looking around for some clothes. Somehow she knew what was coming next.

"Cruz got herself totally wasted and I had a couple of drinks and now we're stranded here. You were the only one I knew in her contacts. I don't think she would want me to call her parents."

"No," Payson said, "don't call her parents. I'm on my way. Where are you guys?"

Five minutes later, she was out the door as quietly as possible and driving towards the address Kelly gave her.

It was some old fairgrounds just outside the city limits, near the trails she ran every morning. She spotted Kaylie, leaning against her car and Kelly arms crossed impatiently.

Payson got out of her mom's station wagon and sighed. "How many did she have?"

The reigning National Champion rolled her eyes and shrugged dramatically. "I don't know. I lost in the crowd for a little while. The party was lame and when I found her she was sitting on an empty keg crying her eyes out over some guy."

Payson pulled out her cellphone.

"Who are you calling?"

"Her brother, Leo. We have to get her into her house without her parents seeing her like this and I think he's home for the summer."

Fifteen minutes later, Payson pulled to a stop in front of the Cruz mansion.

Kaylie moaned from the back seat and sat up. "Uh, I think I'm going to be sick."

"Do not throw up in my mom's car. I will kill you and then bring you back to life and kill you again," she snapped.

Kelly huffed from the passenger seat. "I don't see why you couldn't have dropped me off first."

"Shut up, Parker," Kaylie mumbled from the backseat.

Payson smiled, getting out of the car and moving around to the back seat to help Kaylie out.

The main gate opened up and Leo Cruz sauntered towards them shaking his head. "Oh, she is going to be in so much pain tomorrow," he muttered, as Kaylie slid from the car, holding on to Payson for dear life. "Thanks for bringing her home, Payson."

"No problem. Just make sure she drinks lots of water, okay? Kelly said she had at least three beers."

"Kelly?" Leo said and suddenly KP was out of the front seat, standing with them.

"That's me. Kelly Parker," she said, smiling at him.

"Leo Cruz," he said, his eyes flickering up and down Kelly's form, taking in her mini-dress and high heels.

Payson cleared her throat. "Hate to interrupt you two crazy kids, but…" she trailed off meaningful.

"Right, sorry," Leo said, stepping forward and taking Kaylie from her, wrapping her friend's arm around his neck, holding her upright.

"Night, Pay-Pay. Night KP," Kaylie called, suddenly lucid again. Her voice echoing up the darkened driveway.

"I better get her inside. Thanks again, Payson," Leo said. "Nice meeting you, Kelly."

"You too," Kelly said, smiling again as she climbed into the car.

Payson started the engine and pulled away from the Cruz house.

"You totally did the right thing taking Kaylie home first," KP said, smoothing her dress against her thighs and looking out the window back towards the house.

Rolling her eyes, Payson kept driving. She dropped Kelly off at her tour bus, which was parked in a lot adjacent to the Rock. The bus gave her a creepy feeling, probably because Sheila Baboyan was behind one of the tinted windows glaring at her and possibly pushing sharp pins into a tiny Payson Keeler voodoo doll.

Then again, since she wasn't competing at Nationals, Sheila probably didn't care about her at all anymore. She wasn't a threat to Kelly. She wasn't a threat to anyone.

"Thanks for coming to get me," Kelly said, getting out of the car. "I mean us."

Payson sighed. "Well, we are teamies now, right?" she said, throwing Kelly's words from earlier that day back at her.

Kelly laughed. An actual genuine laugh, not that stupid giggly crap she used with reporters and NGO officials. "Night Keeler. See you on Monday."

"Night KP," Payson said.

She drove home quickly, her house just a few miles away from the Rock and slipped back inside. The rooms were still dark, bedroom doors firmly shut. No one had missed her.

Climbing back into bed, she crumpled up the note she left on her pillow in case her mom woke up and found her gone at two o'clock in the morning.

The next thing she knew, her phone was buzzing again. Blinking awake, she grabbed it from her nightstand and saw an unfamiliar number. It was six thirty on a Sunday morning, who was calling her now?

"Hello?" she rasped into the phone.

"Payson, be at the Rock in a half an hour, ready for practice," Sasha Belov said, his baritone unmistakable even to Payson's sleepy ears.

The line went dead and she was left staring at her phone, wondering if she imagined it. It was Sunday. Why was he calling practice on Sunday?

She felt her stomach lurch and she pinched at the bridge of her nose in frustration. He knew about the party.

"Shit."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I forgot how much I simultaneously enjoy and dread writing this story. I love it because I get to do what I want with canon and I dread it because it's SO HARD to stay within the confines of the "what-if" universe I've created.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed this. It was very much a transition chapter. I broke format a little bit, sticking with Payson's POV throughout the whole chapter. The next will be solely from Sasha's POV. He gets to be Sasha the Terrible in the next chapter, though I can promise you a little UST from our favorite couple is imminent! ;-)
> 
> Let me know what you thought!


	6. Chapter 6

He watched from his office window and waited.

Payson arrived first, glancing up at the office, before stomping over towards the beam and dropping her bag down on the mat. She narrowed her eyes at him through the window and then placed her hands on the beam with a beautiful combination of reverence and defiance.

Then Kaylie came in dragging her heels, eyes glued to her cell phone. As usual, her focus on something other than her training.

"Would you put that away," he heard Payson snap.

Kaylie groaned. "Lower your voice."

"Oh, I'm sorry. Am I talking too loud for the poor hung-over gymnast?"

"Payson," Kaylie hissed. "Shut up. He'll hear you."

Sasha could feel her eyes on him through the window, hoping he hadn't heard. He kept his focus on the desk in front of him, shuffling through random pieces of paper. Then he checked the time. Two minutes 'til eight and Kelly Parker, the girl with the shortest commute – exactly ten steps from the bus to the Rock's front door – was late again.

He heard the door creak open and then slam. Not late then, right on time.

"Is it just us?" Kelly's voice rang out.

"Do you see anyone else?" Kaylie said.

"We are so in for it. I could strangle you two. I didn't even go to that stupid party."

"How would he have found out? No way, it's impossible."

Sasha stood and grabbed the paper bag from the floor. It was time for the girls to understand that playtime was over. He was here to coach Olympians and not spoiled, whiny, average teenagers.

He jogged down the steps onto the floor, watching their faces morph from confusion to trepidation. Reaching into the bag he grabbed a can and tossed it in Payson's direction.

She caught it. Her brow furrowed, studying it and then looking back up at him in confusion. He handed one to Kelly and another to Kaylie before taking one for himself.

Tapping the mouth to keep the liquid from exploding in his face, he cracked it open and raised the can in their direction. "Cheers," he said, before taking a long, exaggerated draught.

Across from him Payson scoffed and rolled her eyes, but Kaylie and Kelly stood stock-still and totally silent.

Sasha opened his mouth, ready to lay into them when a soft crack cut him off. His eyes flew to Payson, who was taking a large sip from her beer, likely her first taste of alcohol if the look on her face was any indication. She swallowed roughly and wrinkled her nose.

Despite himself, Sasha nearly laughed. She was…there were no words. He schooled his expression into displeasure, the speech he planned about dedication and how they were all on probation flying from his head.

"My office now," he said, reaching out and taking the can from her.

Payson shrugged, grabbed her bag and pushed past him, marching up the stairs and out of sight.

Kaylie and Kelly were still standing in front of him, holding cans of cheap, warm beer, staring at him.

"You two are on probation. I didn't come here to coach girls who go out to parties and get drunk." He took the cans from them and then nodded towards the ropes hanging at the far end of the gym. "Thirty climbs in fifteen minutes."

Kaylie groaned.

"If you feel the need to get sick, try not to do it on the mats, Miss Cruz."

He watched them scamper off towards the ropes, swinging their arms and stretching their triceps and biceps in preparation for the climbing. Then he moved back towards his office and the gymnast who confounded him at every turn.

Sliding the door shut behind him, he held her can of beer back towards her. "You want the rest?"

She snorted. "No thanks. Tastes like crap."

"Well, I wasn't going to buy the good stuff just to prove a point to you girls."

Payson quirked an eyebrow at him. "And what point was that, exactly? Beer bad, practice good?"

Cheeky brat. "Something like that."

"Whatever."

"So why didn't you go to the party last night?"

"How do you know I didn't? Maybe keggers are my thing."

It was Sasha's turn to raise an eyebrow. "Really? So when you go to these keggers you're so fond of, do you regularly wear Snoopy pajama pants?"

"What?"

"Because that's what you were wearing when you dropped Kelly off at her bus last night. Snoopy pajama pants and a Rock hoodie. That outfit doesn't exactly scream, kegger."

"How did you know Kelly and Kaylie went?"

"Not important," he said, waving off her question. Really, it was an educated guess. Kaylie's attitude towards training and Kelly's clear desperation to be a part of a team were reasons enough for them to scamper off to a part together. He hadn't been sure if Payson would go with them, until he saw her through the window of his trailer, climbing out of the car in her sleepwear.

"So if Kaylie and Kelly are here to be punished," she asked, nodding towards the two girls struggling up the ropes, "why am I here? Haven't you punished me enough?"

"You think I'm punishing you?"

"What else am I supposed to think? You took away my chance to be National Champion."

"That's what you think? That I'm trying to…" he trailed off trying to find the right word, "hurt you in some way?"

Payson crossed her arms over her chest and shrugged.

Sasha ran a hand through his hair and sighed. He knew she was pissed off at him, he hadn't realized that she felt like this, however. That wasn't part of his plan. He needed her to trust him.

"Payson," he said, drawing her attention, holding her eyes with his. "You are a better gymnast than your body will allow you to be."

"What does that even mean? Why do you always talk in riddles?"

"What I mean is, your abilities, while extraordinary, would have eventually done more harm than good. How old are you, Payson?"

"Seventeen, in two weeks."

"And how old will you be in London?"

"Nineteen, but I don't see what that has to do with…."

"If you kept going at the rate you were going at, you wouldn't be there, in London. Do you understand that? Your body was betraying you."

"I was managing my pain. Marty said…"

"Marty Walsh never dealt with potentially catastrophic injuries, not his own injuries anyway. He won his gold medals and got out of the sport. He doesn't understand what you and I do…"

"And what's that?"

"Competing in pain so bad that it would have most people writhing in agony. I watched you last year at Nationals, Payson. It hurt to walk didn't it? To stretch your arms over your head? To bend down and touch your toes?"

Payson looked away, biting her lip. She swallowed then nodded.

"I'm asking you to trust me. I understand what you were going through and I will help you get to the Olympics. I promise, but I need you to trust me. Can you do that?"

"Do I have a choice?"

"Yeah, you can tell me to bugger off if you like. There are a lot of gyms out there. Marty is just a short commute away."

She sat in silence, biting her lower lip before she looked up at him through her lashes. "I don't want to leave the Rock."

What she didn't say was crystal clear. Her staying had nothing to do with him. She wasn't ready to trust him. He'd just have to convince her.

"Payson, I'm not sure…I don't think even you understand how much potential you have."

"Had," she cut him off. "Potential I had. Now my back feels great, but I can't train and…"

"You can't train for two more weeks, Payson, not forever. And those ballet lessons and yoga classes, they'll keep you in shape until then."

"I still don't understand. Why did I have to have the surgery now? I was going to…I was finally going to win."

"And if you were in so much pain after Nationals that you had to withdraw from Worlds again? What would be the point of being National Champion if you couldn't be World Champion? We had to get your healthy. Your knee is what it is, and we'll be careful with it, but your back, we had to repair it before you did any permanent damage. As soon as the doctor's give you the go-ahead we'll be able to get started."

Any other gymnast would have assumed he meant simply resuming training, but Payson narrowed her eyes. "Get started with what?"

"We're going to totally reinvent you from the ground up."

"What?" she asked, sitting up from her slouch in the chair. "Why? My d-scores are…"

"Your d-scores aren't the problem, your e-scores…"

"Are always in the 9s, even on floor. I scored a 62 in my last meet."

Sasha dismissed it with a wave of his hand. "A 62 with American judges. Tell me, Payson, what's the biggest complaint about American gymnasts internationally?"

"All power, no artistry."

"Right and now I'll ask you, what kind of champion do you want to be? The girl who threw some big tricks and pounded the competition into the ground? Or do you want to be a gymnast who steals the breath from the audience while pounding her competition into the ground?"

"I can do both?"

"Yes, you can."

"How?"

"By trusting me."

"Trusting you to do what?"

"Stand up," he said, standing as well. "Now, use the desk as a barre and turn out, first position."

Payson rested her hand against the edge of his desk and pushed her heels together. Sloppy, but the natural turn out was obvious. Stepping behind her, his hand fell to her hip, holding her steady as he pushed at her heels with the toe of his boot, forcing her turnout a little further.

"Feel that?"

He felt a shudder run through her body, her hip pressing into his hand as she shoulders straightened further. "Yes."

"There are ballerinas in the Royal Ballet who would kill for this natural turn out. You, Payson Keeler are capable of being so much more than just a gymnast and we're going to stun every single gymnastics critic in the world."

"But," she said, stepping away, turning towards him. "All I've ever wanted to be is just a gymnast."

Sasha shook his head. "No, you haven't. You've wanted to be the best gymnast."

"Yeah, that was the idea and I was almost there."

"I don't mean the best gymnast this year. I mean the best gymnast, ever."

"You're insane."

"Maybe," he said, shrugging, "but I'm not wrong."

"I'm not a ballerina. I'm not built for all that dance stuff. I'm not – I'm not graceful enough."

"I disagree," he said, nodding towards the desk again. "First position, turn out."

This time as her heels crashed together, the turnout was complete, hips open, shoulders back. She was learning.

"Good," he said, moving behind her again. He placed a hand against her arm and then traced the line over her scapula across her back to the other arm. "Your shoulders naturally fall into the correct position. You already walk like a string is pulling from the top of your head into the atmosphere and the line of your neck is exquisite." She tilted her head instinctively, demonstrating his point. "We've discussed your turn out. You are one of the most naturally graceful young women I've ever seen. You were made for all that dance stuff."

He stepped around her so he could look at her in the eye. He wanted her to know he meant every word he said.

"The best gymnast ever?" she asked, eyes flashing at his.

"That's the plan," he said.

"And this plan…I'll be ready by Worlds?"

"If you trust me, if you buy into it one hundred percent, then yes, you'll be ready by Worlds."

"And I'll win?"

"If you don't fall."

"I never fall."

"Then you'll win."

Her eyes held his, searching for even a hint of deceit. Whatever she read in his face obviously satisfied her, because she sat down on the edge of he mother's desk and said, "Okay, explain this plan of yours to me. Vault?"

"A Cheng. Competing the handspring double with your knee is sheer insanity."

"But it's my vault, it's going to be named after me."

"It's too risky."

"Compromise," she said. "I train it through Worlds this year, perform it at Worlds and then I'll give it up and work on the Cheng for next year."

Sasha crossed his arms over his chest. "Done." Somehow he knew right around the time the calendar moved from December to January she would find to reason to continue training that handspring double, but for now he would pick and choose his battles.

"Good. Bars?"

"A Stalder full to a Van Leeuwen, inbar Stalder to a piked Jaeger, inbar Stalder full into a Tkatchev to a Pak and immediate Stalder half. A toe on shoot the high bar, toe on full pirouette into your dismount," he rattled off the routine he'd designed for her, the one he'd imagined nearly a year ago while watching her perform at Nationals.

"My dismount?"

"A fly-away three and a half twist, if you can get enough height off the bar. A blind landing like that, they'll probably make it a G skill and it'll have your name on it too."

Payson nodded and he could see her fight down the excitement over the routine. "Beam?"

"Most of your skills will remain the same, though I'd like you to upgrade your switch split to a switch ring. We'll just be tinkering with the composition a bit."

"And floor."

"The Red Shoes," he said.

"Never heard of it."

"What happened to trusting me?"

"Tumbling?"

"One and a half to triple, double layout, two and a half to full, a quad turn, triple Y turn, a switch ring to switch split half and finishing with a piked Dos Santos."

"You want me to dismount with the Dos Santos?"

"You'll have to build up your endurance. Lots of cross training. The thin air around here should help, but if you think it's too difficult…" he trailed off.

"You really are crazy."

"I've been called worse."

"I bet." She stared at him again, her clear green eyes open and for the first time since they'd met, trusting. "Why didn't you just tell me all of this before?"

"Maybe I should have. I…I haven't done this in a long time."

"Coached?"

He shook his head and grinned ruefully. "Talked to people."

"About gymnastics."

"About anything."

"Oh."

Her eyes were wide and she tilted her head. Sasha could felt her gaze burning straight through his, seeing past the stoic mask he wore. It was more than a little unnerving.

The sound of feet pounding up the office stairs startled them and they turned towards the door together.

"Sasha? Sorry to interrupt this little powwow, but Cruz just puked her guts out on the vault landing mat."

"Fantastic," Sasha said, running his hand through his hair. "Cleaning supplies?"

Payson rolled her eyes. "In the storage closet. I'll go get them." She moved past Kelly and Sasha followed.

He jogged down the steps and moved out towards Kaylie who was on her hands and knees, her arms shaking with the effort to hold herself up.

"Kelly, get her some water."

Seconds later, KP returned, holding out a cup of water.

"Kaylie, you need to drink a little of this. You're probably dehydrated."

She nodded and slid around onto her butt. Her eyes were squeezed shut and she took a sharp, shuddering breath.

"Breathe slowly, Kaylie, in through your nose, out through your mouth. Don't inhale too quickly or you'll gag again. Here take a sip."

"I found a mop," Payson said, approaching with the mop in one hand and a bucket full of water in the other. She immediately set to work.

"I'll do that, Pay," Kaylie said, between slow sips of water.

"It's fine," Payson said. "I should have talked you out of going anyway."

"I shouldn't have suggested it," Kelly chimed in.

"And I shouldn't have had anything to drink."

Sasha looked between the girls, stunned. Somehow, even with his plans of torturous conditioning followed by an afternoon of mat cleaning shot to hell, he managed to arrive where he wanted the girls to be before training tomorrow.

"Get this mess cleaned up and then you're all dismissed. Get a good night's sleep. We start seven am tomorrow morning."

Payson lifted her eyes from the mat, the mess nearly gone. "Me too?"

"You'll go to your ballet lesson in the morning and then here in the afternoon."

"Okay."

"Good."

He started back towards the office and smiled to himself. It was just as he thought. His girls were special. Sasha blinked, his girls. When had he started thinking of them as his girls? A small knot of panic crept into his stomach. He'd promised himself he wouldn't get attached again. After what happened in Romania, with Amelia he couldn't afford to – to care. He looked back over his shoulder. Kaylie sitting, still sipping at her water, Payson, nose wrinkled as she finished cleaning and Kelly kneeling beside Kaylie, concern creasing her brow.

Damn it. It was too late. He already cared, maybe more than he ever had before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The bars routine Sasha designed for Payson is Aliya Mustafina's from 2010-2011 (aside from the dismount). It is awe inspiring to watch, so if you get a chance check it out!


	7. Chapter 7

The soft tinkling of the piano in the background set Payson's back teeth on edge and the sound of Miss Viola's cane pounding against the hardwood floor of the dance studio made her wince. It had all sounded great when Sasha was explaining it to her. The best gymnast, not just at the Rock or the Olympics; the best gymnast ever.

Then the pounding stopped. "Come on. Shoulders back, chest high, come on," the British instructor said, poking her with the stick.

Payson flinched away, resting her hand against the barre.

Tsking, the tall, willowy former prima ballerina, poked at her again. "My great grandmother's got better posture than you and she's dead. Alright everyone, I'd like a grand plié in first, second, fourth and fifth."

Sighing and swallowing back the urge to sprint from the room, Payson slid her heels together like Sasha showed her, keeping her spine ramrod straight, pushing her shoulders back and bending her knees into the grand plié.

A heavy sigh at her side had her flinching again.

"Miss Keeler, it has been two weeks of lessons and not a shred of improvement."

She stood and turned towards the crazy ballet lady. "Miss Viola, I am trying…"

"Ah," Miss Viola cut her off, "Tiani, can you show Miss Keeler how to do a grand plié in first position?"

The tiny brunette girl in front of her, no more than eleven years old smirked smugly and demonstrated.

"Voilà."

Payson had to suppress the urge to roll her eyes. She'd like to see the little brat do a triple full off a four-inch balance beam.

"Miss Keeler, your turn."

She tried again.

"Oh for the love of all that is holy, don't roll these pigeon toes and keep your heels down."

She was being poked by that stick again, but she tried. Best gymnast ever, she told herself.

"You're moving like cement."

"I'm sorry. I'm just not a ballerina."

"That much is obvious."

"Sasha explained to you why I'm here."

"Yes, yes, something about natural ability and the best turn-out he's ever seen. There are no naturals in ballet, Miss Keeler; it is an art form that must be felt in every fiber of your being. Every toe, every finger, every eyelash must be displayed perfectly. Not like that gymnastics you do, all that flipping about. It's a sideshow act. I'm not here to train circus freaks, I'm here to train dancers. Now, turn around, to the barre please. Again – go – smile, it's beautiful, ballet."

Three hours later, after being poked and prodded over and over again by that stick and Miss Viola's verbal barbs, Payson wandered into the Rock. The only good thing about the day was that her two-week ban on training was lifted and today she could start working on her skills.

"Payson," Kaylie squealed, running at her full speed from across the gym, gripping her arm and squeezing. "Did you hear? Isn't it awesome?"

"Hear what? Kaylie, I've been at ballet all morning." Now that was a sentence she never thought she'd utter.

"The Rock has to fundraise for Nationals and you'll never guess what we're doing."

"Urg, I swear if it's another carwash I'm going to kill myself. The guys that show up are always such pervs."

"No, better," Kaylie's eyes danced, her grip tightening, twisting Payson's skin so she had to pull away. "It's a Mother-Daughter Fashion Show."

She rolled her eyes as Kaylie scampered back to the beam. Where the hell was Belov? She had to make sure he knew she wouldn't be participating in a ridiculous fashion show. Worlds were four months away. She didn't have any time to waste.

He was standing at the end of the vault run, watching Kelly Parker do Yurchenko timers. The world champ was upgrading from a Yurchenko one and a half, to a double, but the form issues that plagued her during their junior career were creeping into her technique, making the double sloppy.

Payson stepped next to Sasha as Kelly moved back towards the start of the run.

"How was ballet?"

"Awful. Miss Viola hates me and everything I stand for."

Sasha snorted. "She doesn't hate you. She hates that you're wasting your time on gymnastics when she could turn you into an American Ballet Academy student in less than a year. At least that's the impression I got when I spoke to her this morning."

"Whatever. Look, I'm not doing this ridiculous fashion show. I have to concentrate on my training and since I'm not even going to Nationals…"

"Who said you're not going to Nationals?"

The man was certifiable. "You did, dozens of times."

Crossing her arms over his chest, he shrugged. "I said you wouldn't be competing at Nationals. I never said you weren't going. And you will be participating in the fashion show. In fact, you should consider it part of your training."

"Another part of your plan to make me the best gymnast ever?"

"Something like that. Also, because your mum is already overworked as it is, I told Mrs. Cruz that you'd help her plan the event."

"What?" she shouted at a whisper, not wanting to startle Kelly as she threw a Yurchenko full, working up towards the double.

"Better, Kelly. More power and if your ankles cross again you're headed back to the pit," Sasha instructed, ignoring her.

Payson moved in front of him, forcing him to look her in the eye. "I'm supposed to start training skills again this week. I don't have time to help Mrs. Cruz pick out clothes."

He started down at her silently and she drew her lips into a small pout. She somehow knew in that moment that whatever spare time she had this week would be spent with Kaylie's mom.

"Fine, but then I'm working on tumbling on the tramp strips by Friday."

Sasha arched a brow and narrowed his eyes. "Done."

He agreed way too easily. She had a feeling he'd intended her to be working on the tumbling tramps by Friday anyway, but she allowed herself to call it a victory in this constant back and forth battle they'd engaged in since her surgery.

"Fine. Where you do you want me?" she asked.

He blinked and his brow furrowed.

"I'm here to train," she explained as if he were an idiot. "Where do you want me to start?"

"Right, sorry, stretch out for bars. I want you to build your shoulder strength up on some giants on high bar first."

Kaylie had already rotated to bars by the time she stretched out.

"I'm so glad you're back," Kaylie said as they chalked their hands together.

"Me too."

They watched as Sarah, one of the level tens swung through her bar routine. Kaylie leaned up against the chalk bowl and stared up towards the still rings where Carter was working.

"Kaylie," Payson said, nudging her when she saw Sasha frowning in their direction from across the gym.

"I'm so excited for the fashion show. I can't wait to find a dress that totally sets him on fire."

Payson sighed. If Kaylie put half the focus she had on Carter into her gymnastics she could easily challenge for the National Championship.

"I've decided I'm ready to sleep with him."

"What?"

"I love him. I know he's the guy I'm going to spend the rest of my life with."

"Kaylie, that's…" Insane. Stupid. Ridiculous.

"Nope," Kaylie interrupted, smiling. "Don't even try to talk me out of it. I know you don't get it, Pay, but you have to trust me. He's the one."

"Right," Payson said, seeing the level ten dismount from the bars. "You mind if I work first?"

"Go ahead," Kaylie said, her attention returning to Carter while she made a show of digging back into the chalk bowl.

Payson stood at the low bar and rested her hands against the chalked up strip of Plexiglas. Rubbing the grips back and forth across the bar she smiled. This was where she belonged. It felt familiar under her hands and she realized it was the same circumference as the barre she used in ballet class. Miss Viola would go into apoplexy if she ever saw one of her perfect ballerinas doing what Payson intended to do in a moment.

She pushed her weight against the bar and leaped off the floor. Flipping over the bar she folded her body in half, swinging around to stand up, falling towards the high bar. Sasha asked for clean and simple giants and that's what she gave him, huge circles, stretching out her shoulders, keeping her lines long and her toes pointed.

"Good," she heard from the mat below. "Just a layout fly away now."

Payson obeyed, releasing the bar after her last giant and floating down to the mat.

"The ballet is helping," Sasha said, as she caught her breath, unable to keep the maniacal smile from spreading across her face. That's what she missed. That gymnastics high, that super-human feeling nothing else could duplicate.

She shrugged. "Whatever."

"Not whatever," he said, "your lines are ten times better than they were before your surgery. How does your back feel?"

For the first time, since the surgery, she smiled thinking about her back. Bars routines had become increasingly more difficult when the pain grew worse, but now she felt nothing, no sharp pain, no dull ache.

"Alright, that's enough for today."

"What? But I…"

"Payson, let's take it one thing at a time, okay? We have four months. I know patience isn't your strong suit, but you promised to trust me."

Inhaling sharply through her nose, she nodded. "Fine."

"Good. Mrs. Cruz is up in the office waiting for you."

****

Sasha grinned when her mouth drew together in a pout. It was a very good thing Payson Keeler had no idea how beautiful she was. One day she was going to make some man her willing slave just by pouting at him like that.

"Go on," he urged. "The sooner you get all the details ironed out, the sooner you can get back to training."

She turned and stomped away towards the locker room muttering about stupid wastes of time, but he wasn't worried about her anymore. Even though Viola's reports were less than encouraging, his plan was well on its way.

The other girls on the other hand…

"Kaylie, standing and staring is not an Olympic sport," he barked, making the girl still standing at the chalk bowl, rather than swinging on the bars, jump. Quickly averting her eyes from the mop-headed young man working on the rings.

Carter Anderson, men's National team member, rings specialist and the source of Kaylie Cruz's constant distraction.

He knew Marty had a strict no dating rule and Sasha thought it was a load of crap, but maybe for Kaylie it wasn't a bad idea. He frowned as she rushed through her bar set. They were just a month out from Nationals and she was regressing.

She dismounted, the double pike she'd been doing since he arrived. They'd worked on a double layout in the bar pit, but she wasn't even close to landing it. Where was her desire – her passion for the sport? The only thing she seemed to be interested in was Carter Anderson.

The question he faced now, did he interfere?

Kaylie stood on the mat, waiting for his critique. Sasha made his decision.

"You're a delightful performer, Kaylie," he began, trying to find the right words. "Delightful performers don't win Olympic medals. You're not a little girl anymore. You need – self-definition, third chakra. Do you know what I mean?"

She smiled again and shrugged. "Not really."

"I didn't think so. Well, then, that double layout we've been working on as your dismount. It has to be ready by Nationals."

A stricken look flew across her face. At least there was that much, self-awareness was something he could work with. "What if it's not?"

"Then you won't be going to Nationals."

Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open. "What? You can't do that."

"No, what I cannot do is send a girl to Nationals whose routines belong in a level ten state meet, not the National Championships. I don't know what's holding you back, but you need to fix it, understand?"

Kaylie bit her lip, her eyes darting towards the rings again. "Yes."

"Good. Break for lunch and then I want you on floor with Kelly."

Running a hand through his hair, Sasha moved up towards the office. He found Kim sitting at her desk, shuffling through what looked like travel arrangements for their trip to Boston and a stack of papers teetering at the edge of the desk with fundraising information.

"I asked Payson to help Mrs. Cruz with the fashion show," he said, taking a seat across from her at his desk.

"I heard," Kim said, smirking at him. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"She needs a distraction before Nationals and it'll help with her training."

Tilting her head in confusion, Kim asked, "Her training?"

"Payson needs to get in touch with a side of herself she's uncomfortable with, unless she does, all of her training won't do her any good."

"She performs for people all the time."

Sasha nodded. "As an athlete, not as a girl. She equates that feminine side with weakness."

"Weakness?"

"It's why she was so resistant to the ballet lessons. Why they aren't really having the desired effect yet. She needs to harness the power she could hold over an audience and in order to do that, she needs to embrace the fact that she's a beautiful young woman."

Kim snorted. "You said that to her?"

"Not in so many words, but…"

"Don't, she'll think you're insane."

"She already thinks that."

"I can't imagine why," Kim said, smiling at him gently. "So this assignment, helping Ronnie with the fashion show is an attempt to, how did you put it…" A soft laugh escaped from her throat.

"Laugh all you want. I'm right about this. You'll see."

****

She felt like a gigantic, underdressed freak leaning up against the wall of the formal dress section of a store she'd never even heard of before, while Kaylie's mom directed several store employees around. She had everything under control. Payson didn't have to be there, but she knew there would be hell to pay from Sasha if she left early.

"Okay, I think that's everything we'll need for the others. Let's get started on you."

Payson blinked at the tiny woman standing in front of her, a near replica of her best friend twenty years into the future.

"Me?"

"Yes, you. That's the perk of being here, Payson, you get first dibs on the best dresses. I pulled a few aside for you."

"Oh, I umm…"

"Let's go," Ronnie said, grabbing her hand and dragging her into a changing room. "This one first." She held out a small pink handful of fabric. "Let's make the most of those curves and don't you roll your eyes at me, young lady. I've been dying to get a hold of you for years."

"Mrs. Cruz, I don't think…"

"Less talking, Payson." She shooed her into the changing room and shut the door.

Studying the dress, Payson grimaced and held it against her body. Strapless, fan-flippin-tastic. Was this part of Sasha's plan too? Get her into a dress, make her into a girly girl capable of doing all the things he wanted her to do as a gymnast? He was so deluded. Stubborn, thickheaded, arrogant ass, thought he was so smart. Ballet, yoga, a fashion show, did he think he was being subtle?

Stripping off her t-shirt and jeans, she slid into the dress, frowning as the straps of her bra showed. She slipped them down off her shoulders and tucked them in, before zipping up the dress and looking into the mirror.

"Wow."

Mrs. Cruz opened the door, totally uninvited. She smiled. "Hang on," she said, reaching up and pulling the band from Payson's hair, letting it fall down around her shoulders. "There. You, my dear, are a total bombshell."

Swallowing, she tilted her head, studying her reflection. She blinked and ran a hand through her hair, tousling it like she'd seen movie stars do.

"Damn it," she muttered. "He was right."

"Ooh, he?" Mrs. Cruz said, smiling widely, eyebrows lifting in shock. "Anyone in particular?"

Had she said that out loud? Crap. "No, just…it's nothing." A six foot one inch nothing who thought he knew her better than she knew herself.

"Right, of course, nothing. Just like Kaylie and Carter, right?"

Payson's head snapped around. "How did you know?" And how much did Mrs. Cruz know? Did she know that Kaylie was going to have sex with him? Should she tell her? She couldn't, that would be a total betrayal of Kayile's trust, but…

"Please, Payson, a mom always knows. So, who is he?" The question drew her from the hundreds of thoughts swirling in her mind.

"Who?"

"The boy who was right?"

"Oh, no, there isn't any boy." Which wasn't exactly a lie, Sasha Belov was no boy. "Just – Sasha said something about my training earlier today and I just figured out that he was right and he gets really smug when he's right about something. Worse than Marty ever did."

Mrs. Cruz flinched, but then shook herself, a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes sliding across her face. "Honey, that's a trait all men share. Get used to it."

Payson grimaced. "I don't think I need to try on any more dresses, I think this one is…"

"Perfect," Mrs. Cruz finished for her and nodded. "It really is. I had my eye on it for you the moment I saw it and for you mom, the plum chiffon."

She held the hanger aloft and Payson grinned. Her mom was going to freak when she saw the dress she had to wear, but if Sasha was going to force her to walk a runway, then Payson was going to drag her mother down it with her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay! Hope two chapters made up for the wait!


	8. Chapter 8

Training was just wrapping up as Payson walked into the Rock wheeling a dress rack behind Mrs. Cruz. Several of the coaches, Sasha included were dismantling the bars and beam while the staff hired for the fundraiser were assembling the runway and tables for the show. It felt like the Rock did the night of the Rocky awards, the lighting much dimmer than the bright fluorescent glow used during training. Mrs. Cruz headed straight for the stage, but Payson stopped as Kaylie raced over to her. She started flicking through he dresses hanging from her rack.

"Please tell me you found something decent," Kaylie implored. "I mean urban safari can be so hit or miss. You didn't get me a leopard print dress, did you?"

"I mean, it might be leopard," Payson said, making sure to bite her lip innocently and keep a straight face. If she had to suffer three hours of shopping with Kaylie's mom while Kaylie got the train, then her friend could deal with a little bit of teasing now. "I can never tell. Do leopards have the big spots or the little ones? Maybe they're cheetah spots!"

"Payson," Kaylie half shrieked. "I told you no animal prints!" She started frantically sifting through the clothes on the section of the rack marked with her name. "I knew I should have gone with you guys. I have to look smoking hot tonight."

"Oh my God, relax, Kay," Payson said and finally gave in to the laugh burgeoning in her throat. "I got you a green dress. Your mom is in khaki. No animal print in sight, I promise and your party-look is almost all sequins. Super sparkly, like a disco ball. I pretty much matched it to the magazine you gave me. You're gonna look great, just like always." She fished the copy of Teen Vogue out of her gym bag. It had dozens of post-its sticking out of it with looks that Kaylie had deemed acceptable. "I don't understand the big deal anyway. You have like a hundred dresses at home."

Kaylie took the magazine back and glanced around. No one was in earshot. She leaned in closer to Payson. "I decided that tonight's the night. I'm gonna have sex with Carter, so I need everything to be perfect."

Payson cringed, thinking back to what Mrs. Cruz said at the store. Kaylie's mom knew about her and Carter. She seemed to be okay with it, but what would she think if she knew this? "Kaylie are you sure? I mean it's a month until Nationals. Is now really the time to be making life changing decisions?"

"Says the girl who just had voluntary surgery killing her chance at winning a National Championship and leaving me to train with Kelly Parker," Kaylie snapped, but her gaze had traveled across the gym to where Carter was disassembling the pommel horse with Nicky Russo.

Pushing back the urge to roll her eyes at the other girl or maybe strangle her. "You know I didn't have a choice, Kay. This is...this is a big deal and you can't take it back."

"I don't exactly expect you to understand, Pay. It's fine," Kaylie said.

Payson opened her mouth to retort, but her words caught on her tongue when Sasha stepped around the rack and nodded to her. His thin t-shirt clung to him, a sheen of sweat coating his skin from taking apart equipment and hefting it out of sight. For a moment Payson panicked and Kaylie's eyes grew wide. Had Sasha heard what they were talking about?

"I see you survived," he quipped, giving no indication he'd been aware of the topic of their conversation.

"Barely," Payson shot back, her eyes narrowing at Kaylie as she slipped away, leaving her with their coach. "You owe me one."

He laughed lightly and let his blue eyes twinkle at her. "What about if I told you that after thoughtful consideration and seeing how hard you've worked at ballet, I've decided that you'll be training with the goal of competing bars and beam at Nationals."

"Are you kidding?" she managed to choke out past her heart leaping into her throat. She'd gladly suffer through a dozen more shopping trips if this was how she'd be rewarded.

"I don't kid about gymnastics," he said. "I take it that means we're even?"

"More than even. I owe you one!" Payson sprung towards him, throwing her arms around his neck and hanging on for dear life. She felt his arms come around her, lifting her slightly off the ground and a soft chuckle expel from his chest. Her heart thunked and then sped up a bit as a light shiver began where his hands met at the small of her back.

"Remember," he said, setting her back down, his grin as wide as her own. "This is only if your routines are competition ready and by that I mean world class."

She shook off the tingling in her skin as she looked up into his eyes. "They will be. I promise. I'll work so hard. Like you've never seen before."

"And equally as hard at ballet," he said, quirking an eyebrow.

Payson pressed her lips together. She'd walked right into the trap he set. "I'll try."

"You'll do more than try. We won't be working on your floor choreography until I get the thumbs up from Viola." Her mouth dropped open to protest. "However, I spoke to her again after our chat this morning and we decided that you'd probably benefit more from private lessons rather than group instruction. You could accomplish so much more in far less time."

A wave of terror passed through Payson. "I'm going to be alone with her?" At least with the other girls around some of Viola's wrath and critique fell on them as well. Now it would just be the two of them, and that walking stick turned cattle prod. And she wasn't going to be able to train floor until ballet was going well? She may as well drop floor as an event all together because now that was never going to happen.

Sasha's face fell, a hand running through his hair in frustration. "I thought you'd be pleased."

"As punch," she muttered, grabbing the bar of the clothes rack and yanking it in the direction of the staging area behind the runway. Just as she rounded the corner, she nearly collided headlong with Kelly Parker, still dressed for training.

"Watch where you're going, Keeler. Jeez, maybe you should've had LASIK instead of back surgery."

"Buzz off," Payson bit out and nearly pushed past her. "Wait, we didn't get any clothes for you today. Don't you have to walk in this thing too?"

Kelly's cheeks flushed red and she shrugged with a little too much nonchalance. "Like I'd be caught dead doing this. I can afford Nationals without making an idiot of myself."

Payson narrowed her eyes. "But you love stuff like this. Anything to get in front of a -" she trailed off as Kelly shoulders hunched a little bit. "Listen, if you want, Mrs. Cruz picked out like a dozen dresses for Kaylie. I'm sure one of them would fit you. You guys are about the same size."

"It's fine," Kelly said, nearly talking over her. "My mom isn't even here. She's in LA meeting with some of the reps for my new leo line."

So that was the problem. Kelly's mother-slash-manager-slash-publicist couldn't be there, or maybe didn't give enough of a crap to even try. Despite their animosity over the years, Payson felt that bleeding heart she knew she had for strays clench. "You could walk with me and my mom if you want." Kelly opened her mouth, probably to refuse, but Payson pressed on. "You'd actually be doing me a big favor. I'm really not looking forward to this and it would take some of the pressure off if someone else was up there."

Payson could practically see the wheels turning in Kelly's head, searching out a way Payson could be messing with her, so Payson kept her face as neutral as possible. It wasn't KP's fault her mom sucked.

"Fine," the national champion said after a few moments, "but I get to pick my dress. I wouldn't trust your fashion sense on a dog."

"You'll need two actually. A dressy, formal look and one for a 'spring picnic'," Payson recited the theme Mrs. Cruz had drilled into her while picking dresses for her and her mom. "Call time is in two hours!"

Kelly nodded. "Whatever. Just don't fall when we're walking down the runway, Keeler. You're already broken enough," she said, moving around her and walking away.

Payson rolled her eyes so hard she expected them to fall out of their sockets. "I'll do my best," she called to her back and tugged the rack of dresses as she made her way backstage.

Thirty minutes and a dozen perfectly organized racks of clothes later and Payson trudged up to the gym office.

"Sasha, can I at least go to the annex for an hour and work on bar dismounts into the pit," she said, hoping to cash in whatever regret he felt for those solo ballet lessons he'd arranged for some extra training.

"Sasha left," her mom responded from her desk, "but I'm pretty sure his answer would be a big, fat no."

"Urg, fine," Payson said, tossing herself onto the black leather couch at the far end of the office. "Training day is shot anyway."

"Let me just grab these travel arrangements for Nationals and then we can go," Kim said, sorting through a stack of folders on her desk.

She grunted her response and waited. "Listen Pay…" her mom trailed off, stepping up to the couch and looking down at her. "Shift over." Kim sat beside her. "You know my mom would hate this fashion show."

"Gran?" Payson asked. Her Gran still lived back in Minnesota and while Payson only saw her now at holidays, she'd spent hundreds of afternoons at her Gran's house before they moved away.

"In fact, she kind of made fun of girls who fussed with all that stuff. She always thought it was silly and I think...maybe I do that too." Payson nodded, but eyed her mother warily. She had a soft tone to her voice, the one that usually accompanied a lecture that for her own good. "I think I got the idea that being girly was being weak and maybe I just you know, play down everything, just to protect myself. I don't know. All I know is I do not want to pass any of this on to you."

"Mom, not wanting to wear dresses and prance around on stage isn't a character flaw," Payson argued. "I'm just not comfortable with it and I don't see why that's a problem. I feel like the incredible hulk up there with Kaylie and Kelly, who'll be walking with us just so you know because I'm such a sap. Boys don't look at me the way they look at them and seriously, I'd rather not sell tickets to it."

She stood up and started to walk away, but her mom called her back. "Payson, you are a strong, graceful young woman and boys do notice you. I see it here at the gym. I just think you don't notice them."

Payson shrugged. She didn't notice the boys at the Rock because there really wasn't anyone to notice. Carter Anderson with his floppy hair and constant goofy half smile didn't really do anything for her. Nicky Russo, he was kind of cute, but not really her type. Not that she had a type, she thought, quashing down the image that flickered in her head of long lean muscle, a perpetually scruffy jaw and feathery, fair hair.

Her mom gave her a searching look that was a bit more knowing than Payson liked, so she changed the subject. "Sasha says I can't train floor unless I meet Miss Viola's expectations in ballet class and I can't...I don't know how to do what he wants…."

"You know what I think?" Kim said, smiling at her. "I think you're thinking about this too much. Come on. Let's go home. You can take a hot shower and I promise by the end of the night, you'll understand."

"You think so?"

"I know so."

Sasha tugged at the cuffs of the starched white shirt he'd picked up from the cleaners that morning. Glancing in the mirror hung on the Airstream's wall, he narrowed his eyes at the tight collar, already choking him. With a flick of his fingers, the button was undone and he ignored the tie he'd set out. It wasn't like he was walking the runway tonight. A jacket and a collar was more than formal enough. Headlights began to flash through the slatted windows of his temporary home with enough frequency to know that the show was likely to be getting underway and he should head inside, so with a final nod at his reflection, he stepped outside, just in time to see a familiar silhouette step out of a beaten up old Jeep and a convertible packed full of girls in the bright blue jackets of Denver Elite pull in behind.

"Belov," Marty called, after pressing the alarm button on his keyring.

"Walsh," he said, with a nod, making his way across the car park towards his old friend and competitor. "Are you staging an invasion tonight?"

"The girls thought it would be fun," Marty said with a shrug as the gymnasts led by Lauren Tanner piled out of the car and practically skipped into the Rock.

"I bet," Sasha said. "Nothing to do with wanting to see what I've done with your old gym, though, I'm sure."

"Of course not," Marty said, flashing him a smile. It was a familiar sight from a man he once called best mate. The years had been kinder to Marty than himself, but then again, aside from a few golden moments in Sydney, life had been kinder to Marty on the whole.

"Of course not," Sasha agreed, his tone making it clear he knew it was bullshit. "You haven't aged a bit."

"You have," Marty said, without a shred of humor. "Guess you're still hitting the sauce."

"Guess you're still hitting on unavailable women," Sasha said, with a head flick towards the Cruz family's Range Rover, parked just a few yards away.

A flicker of embarrassment passed over Marty's face, but he trudged on with their banter. "Guess you're still reeling from that one, huh?"

Sasha let a smile creep onto his face. "Maybe a bit, at the time, but it did allow me more focus to win four Olympic gold medals."

Marty let the mask break and laugh. "Yeah, it did. How is that knee of yours?"

"Hurts," Sasha said, nodding down to it. "Worth it though."

"Come on, Belov. Let's go inside and I'll buy you a drink, you know, for old time's sake."

Sasha rolled his eyes. "It's an open bar."

"Better and better."

The floor of the Rock was practically glittering. He had to hand it to Ronnie Cruz. It looked nothing like the gym he'd helped disassemble that morning, though the faint scent of sweat and gym chalk still lingered in the air. As they grabbed their drinks, the lights flickered once and then again and a disembodied voice called out over the speakers. "Please take your seats. The show is about to begin."

Sasha stood at the back and Marty next to him. His eyes took stock of the viewing audience and in the corner of his peripheral vision he saw the gaggle of Denver Elite girls in the front row on the other side of the catwalk. There was likely still some bad blood between the Tanner girl and his girls, but he hoped they could remain civil for one night.

As the show started, he felt Marty tense beside him. The first pair was Kaylie and her mother.

The glass in his friend's hand was suddenly lifted to his mouth and the drink it held downed in one gulp. It seemed like the rumors were true. There'd been more than a grain of truth in his quip about unavailable women earlier. They were Marty's Achilles heel and had cost him the finest club in the country.

"First up, it's a jungle out there! Here's the lovely and delightful Kaylie and Ronnie Cruz in urban safari!" the announcer called.

"You alright, mate?" Sasha muttered just loud enough to be heard over the blaring music and cheering audience.

"Yeah, fine," Marty said.

Sasha focused on the stage and his eyes narrowed when he saw Kaylie's eyes land on row of the Rock's male gymnasts set beside the runway. There was definitely eye contact with one of them and a little too much of it for his liking. Like mother, like daughter, he supposed and decided that he'd have to keep a closer eye on her during training.

A few of the juniors and their mothers went next, awkward and adorable in all their preteen glory, scampering up and down the runway in heels that they couldn't quite manage yet. Ronnie Cruz was on the mic now, mc'ing the event she'd coordinated.

"Kim and Payson Keeler with Kelly Parker, or supermodels who look a lot like them, are ready for the red carpet in their dressy look," Ronnie announced.

Beside him, Marty let out a choking sound. "You got Payson to do this? How?"

"She trusts me," Sasha said with a glare, though he kept his focus on the stage. He still didn't quite understand how Marty had left Payson behind. No matter what Steve Tanner had on him, you didn't walk away from a gymnast like Payson. His thoughts were cut off when the Keeler women stepped out onto the stage, accompanied by Kelly Parker, a moment he could only credit to Payson. Mortal enemies one moment, walking the runway together in the next.

"Christ," Sasha grit out. Kim and Kelly looked gorgeous, Kim in a long purple number that made her look like a Greek goddess and Kelly in a blue-ish purple mini dress, balancing flawlessly on high heels that brought her all the way up to Kim's height, but his eyes landed on Payson and fixed there. Everything he'd been trying to accomplish with her over the last few weeks radiated from her skin, a blinding glow that could stun a man. She was beautiful and she knew it. Now maybe, finally, his plans could begin to take shape.

"They said you were a miracle worker as a coach and I didn't believe them," Marty said by his side, "but it's been two months and I don't recognize a girl I've trained for two years. What the hell have you been up to Belov?"

"Why don't you come and find out?" Sasha said, as the trio disappeared back behind the stage. He'd been playing with the idea for the past week, but it solidified as he'd watched the girls train, their routines growing ever closer to peak form. "An invitational here at the Rock. Our senior elites against yours."

"Payson's ready for competition?" Marty asked, eyebrows raised.

"Not quite as yet. She'll do exhibition routines."

Marty regarded him for a long moment. "Let me think about it."

Sasha nodded. "Stop by tomorrow and let me know."

With a nod of his own, Marty clapped him on the shoulder. "See you tomorrow then," he said, and walked away.

The show flew by, a stream of dresses and casual wear that for some reason, according to the Rock mothers, people would want to buy for far more than the price on the tag. The gymnasts and mothers turned models all filtered out from behind the stage, still dressed in their final looks of the night and Sasha smiled when he saw Payson give her mom a long, lingering hug, her smile still as bright as it'd been on the runway. He made eye contact with her from over her mum's shoulder and lifted his glass in salute. Pulling away, Payson said something to Kim and then headed in his direction.

"Club soda with a twist of line," he muttered to the bartender, who had the drink ready by the time Payson made it to the bar.

"Nice turn out," he said, taking a sip of his beer.

"It was fine, I guess. Mom said we made enough to get to Nationals."

His smile widened. "I meant you," he said.

"It's a pretty dress," she said, biting her lip and shrugging.

"It's actually the confidence that's captivating, not the dress," he said, raising his glass to her. She picked up the drink he'd ordered for her and clinked it against his. "Cheers."

"Cheers." A soft blush crept over her cheeks. "It was...I'm not going to say fun, but…"

"You look beautiful. Though you look as beautiful while you're training, just to make that clear," Sasha said, his throat constricting as this conversation was suddenly a touch more awkward than he'd planned. He took another sip of his beer.

"Thank you," she said, her voice low as she looked up into his eyes and held them. "I know I fought you on this, but I think I understand now, what you and Miss Viola and my mom have been trying to say."

Sasha cleared his throat, trying to look away from her, but it was completely beyond his capabilities. "Good. Now you should go join your friends and enjoy the party. We still have an early day of training tomorrow and I have a surprise for you girls."

"Your surprises generally suck, Sasha," she said, with a laugh.

A grin crept across his face. "Oh trust me, you're going to like this one."


	9. Chapter 9

Since she was given the go-ahead to train full out by the doctors, Payson had returned to her morning habit of running through Chautauqua Park. The three miles of familiar trails were the perfect way to prep for a day of training. However, thanks to a text from Kaylie, her morning plans had changed.

Need to talk. Come over before practice?

The message was devoid of any emojis or any of Kaylie's usual texting dramatics, so instead of making a left out of her driveway, she made a right and headed for the gated community about three miles from her front door.

She was a sweaty mess by the time she arrived, even the first glimmers of the early morning July sun were intense, beating down on her as her feet pounded the pavement. She slipped through the gate after being buzzed in and jogged up to the door only to have it open just as she arrived.

"Hey Payson," Leo said, smiling at her. "Where's your friend?"

"My friend?" Payson asked, playing dumb and smiling back.

"About yea high," he gestured to his shoulder, "helped you bring my drunk off her ass sister home a couple of weeks ago."

Payson laughed and raised her hands in mock surrender. "I'm not getting in the middle of Kelly Parker's love life. If you wanna talk to her, she'll be at the Rock in a couple of hours."

"Good to know. Kaylie's upstairs."

"Thanks," she said moving into the Cruz's palatial entryway and then sprinting up the stairs. Kaylie had insisted that Carter was spending the night, so either things hadn't gone as planned or he'd left before morning. Payson wrinkled her nose. Either way, Kaylie probably wasn't about to wax poetic about the night before.

She knocked lightly, "Kaylie?"

The door swung open and Kaylie pulled her in. Payson regarded her carefully as her friend shut the door behind her, then looked around the room. It looked the same as always, bed neatly made, neat as a pin thanks to the Cruz cleaning lady.

Payson sat on the edge of Kaylie's bed and waited, but her friend turned to look at her and just stared.

"Kaylie are you okay?"

"What? Yeah, I'm okay."

"Okay…" she trailed off. "So then why did you want me to come over?"

"I don't...I...Carter came over last night," Kaylie began and Payson nodded. Clearly Kaylie had something to say, but she needed to work up to it, so she was just going to wait. "He came over and we...we did it."

"Wow," Payson said, the news feeling totally anticlimactic. "So...you…"

"Yeah. Aren't you going to ask me how it was?" Kaylie led her.

Payson has absolutely no interest in what sex with Carter Anderson was like, but she pushed through for her friend. "What was it like?"

Kaylie flopped back on the bed. "It was horrible."

Spinning around and crossing her legs underneath her, she tried to give Kaylie her full attention. She was clearly upset, but Payson had no frame of reference for any of this. "Yeah?"

"It hurt so much, Pay. And it was so awkward. He kept pulling my hair by accident and then I don't even know, it really hurt and then it was just over."

"I'm sorry?" Payson said, reaching out and grabbing her hand. Lauren had always been so much better at girl talk. Mostly Payson just sat there, listened and made them refocus when it was time to train.

"This sucks so much. He knew it was awful too. He left like right after. I was so bad at it, Payson."

"I mean it takes two, right? It wasn't just you. He was bad too."

"He's had sex before. He knew what he was doing."

Payson snorted. "I'm pretty sure if you didn't enjoy it, then he didn't know what he was doing."

"What if he breaks up with me?" Kaylie asked, her voice cracking, clearly not having heard a word Payson said.

"Then he's an asshole who doesn't deserve you," Payson started with and when Kaylie's eyes filled with tears, she continued, "but that's not going to happen. You love him and he loves you, right? Maybe it'll get better?"

"Ugh, I don't even want to think about doing it again. Not if I'm going to feel like this the next morning. Everything hurts. I'm not going into the Rock today. I told my mom I have a stomach bug."

Payson blinked at her. "Nationals are a month away, Kaylie."

"And nothing I do today is going to change that or how I'm going to finish in a month," she said with a huff. "I'll make it up later this week. I just need to sleep."

"I'm gonna go then," Payson said, standing up and pursing her lips, knowing she should say something more. "I'm sorry it wasn't what you wanted, Kaylie. I really am."

Kaylie pasted a weak smile on her face. "I mean most girls don't enjoy their first time, right? I'm just glad it was with someone I really love."

Payson let those words hang in the air as she left the room and closed the door behind her. So much for getting a ride from Kaylie, it looked like she was running to the Rock today.

The sense of newness had finally faded for Payson as she went through her morning routine, arriving at the Rock, waving to Sasha up in the office as he drank his coffee, dumping her bag in the locker room and then running through a warm-up with Kelly Parker, of all people.

"Okay, Kelly, I want you working half bar routines this rotation," Sasha said just after they finished their warm-ups, motioning to the set of uneven bars closer to the entrance and Payson watched her move off in the direction.

"Sasha," she said, turning to him and following him towards the other set of bars. "I haven't been out that long. Not enough to lose any skills and I've been keeping up on my conditioning. I can work half routines too."

He shook his head firmly. "First you'll show me all your skills in isolation, build up to your combinations and leave off the dismount. Better to be safe than sorry. I want you to have it by next week, at the very least without the dismount."

"Why?" she asked, moving to the chalk bowl nearest the second set of bars. "What's next week?" But he wasn't looking at her anymore. His eyes had shifted to the door where Marty had just walked in, along with two women behind him. The first Payson recognized as Summer, Steve Tanner's girlfriend and the other she vaguely remembered as Emily Kmetko's mom from that girl's short stay at the Rock. "Sasha?"

A hand landed on her shoulder and squeezed lightly. "Warm-up and see how the first quarter of your routine feels. Jake will spot you. I'll be right back." Marty and the two women were already up in the office and Sasha quickly followed behind them.

"What's going on?" Kelly said, moving over to Payson's chalk bowl under the guise of grabbing a small spray bottle.

"Hell if I know." Payson shook her head and focused on the chalk bowl. "Whatever it is, he wants my bar routine ready by next week."

"Do you think he...I mean he brought Marty in. Do you think he set up some kind of competition?"

Payson's eyebrows flew up into her hairline. "What? A month before Nationals?" That was...risky. If they competed before Nationals and any of them looked off their game, it might carry over into the actual competition, even just the perception of weakness could be enough to keep you off the National Team when Ellen Beals put together the final roster.

"Kelly," Tara, their other assistant coach called her over, raising her hands in a what's taking so long gesture.

Payson shrugged to Kelly. "We'll find out soon enough."

"Alright, Keeler. Let's see if you still got it," Jake, an assistant coach who'd been at the Rock since before she'd moved to Boulder.

"Sasha said the first quarter. I'm going to try the stalder full first before I connect it to the Van Leeuwen. Spot me?"

"Sure thing, kid," he said, as she tightened her grips and blew off some of the excess chalk. Standing between the high and low bar, facing the low, she placed her hands on the bar and let her arms take all her weight as she swung beneath it, legs extended out and then used her momentum to pull herself against the bar and up into a handstand, legs coming together with perfect toe point above the bar. She let her momentum fall, folding her body in half and her legs into a straddle as she moved below the bar again, popping up over it, only this time her hands flew around, wrists rotating and her entire body pirouetting into a full turn, again landing right on top of the bar in a handstand. She felt Jake's hands hovering over her hips, but she didn't need him to keep her balance. Jumping down, she nodded to him.

"Looked great to me," Jake said, with a gruff nod. "You want to try connecting it?"

"Yeah," she said, moving to the chalk bowl to add a little more grip. She spit onto the chalky dust on her palms and rubbed them together, before moving between the bars again. She repeated the same skills, the kip up to the handstand, the fold of her body down below the bar and then up, rotating around one full turn. She allowed her momentum to fall purposefully again, this time folding her body in half, her knees up near her eyes and her toes between her hands on the bar. She exploded around it and then up and backwards over to the high bar, legs squeezed together, toes pointed as her body twisted halfway around, her eyes just catching sight of the fiberglass before her grips found it and caught, no problem. She had enough swing up and into another perfect handstand - the most important thing about an uneven bars routine, hitting handstands at vertical - then she let her body lose its tight form. She hadn't told Jake she'd be moving beyond that skill.

Releasing the bar, she jumped down to the mat and looked to Jake, who had a huge smile on his face. "Like you never missed a day, Payson."

She was a little out of breath. Endurance on bars was the toughest thing to build up, but she had a whole month until Nationals. Her eyes flickered up to the office, where Sasha was still meeting with Marty. Could she have the whole thing back together in a week? She didn't know, but the first step was making sure she could still nail her inbar half turn to pike Jaegar. It was a skill that gave her a lot of problems when she first learned it. Her distance from the bar was difficult to judge with her body folded in half then having to unfold in order to catch, all without waiting too long and missing it completely. Payson blew a stray hair out of her face. She was prepared to eat a lot of mat today, as long as she had this routine down for whatever Sasha had planned.

Sasha stood leaning up against the office window with Kim Keeler and the two gym managers from Denver Elite worked out the schedules for the meet to be held in the middle of next week at the Rock. Denver would take a morning training slot so they could get used to the equipment. It would be a small meet, the two senior elites from both clubs competing all around, plus Payson with her two exhibition routines.

"So, I've decided you're nuts," Marty said, just a few feet away at the chair of his old desk, the one Sasha had claimed for his own.

"Yeah, it is a ballsy idea, but then hey I thought you had balls."

"I don't know what you have up your sleeve, but what I do know is I'm at the top of my game. You, they just pulled you out of the moth balls."

"You do realize it's the girls that'll be competing next week, not the two of you," Kim quipped from the couch.

"But if you two insist, you two could just whip them out right here and settle it, once and for all," Chloe Kmetko, mother of the mysterious Emily, the girl Marty had taken with him to Denver, said, just a few decibels too loud.

"That's okay, really," the other woman, a younger blonde said while Kim let out a laugh.

"Your office must be an interesting place," Sasha said, when the women focused on their plans again.

"They have their own office," Marty said, barking out a laugh.

"Either of them unavailable?" Sasha murmured, nodding towards the women on the couch and Marty glared at him. Sasha was well over what happened all those years ago between Marty and MJ just before Sydney, but he'd been his best mate and she, his first love. It had broken his twenty year old heart or at least what was left of it after his mum died.

"Okay, I think that's it," Kim said, standing up. "Ladies, just pop me a call if you have any questions or anything changes, but I think we're all set."

They left the office as a group and Marty paused at the bottom of the stairs, watching Payson swing up onto the bars, falling backwards between the high and low bar in an el-grip before her momentum carried her back around and she let go, piking her legs up and then catching the bar as it passed her on the way down, swinging lightly down to the low bar with a flip between in a Pak salto.

"You teach her that?" Marty asked, the awe clear in his voice.

Sasha smiled and shrugged innocently. He and Payson would be having a conversation about throwing tricks she hadn't discussed with him later, but right now that move was more of a kick in the nuts for Marty than anything Sasha could have pulled out of his verbal sparring arsenal. "See you Wednesday."

"Wednesday," Marty agreed, shaking his hand and leaving the gym.

"Payson," Sasha said as soon as the door was closed behind the Rock's former coach.

"I know, I know," she said, already off the bars and standing beside Jake. "But I had too much rotation after the first few times I tried the release and nearly killed myself and I'd done a straddled Jaeger to Pak as a junior and so I suggested it to Jake and we tried it and it's so easy Sasha. My back doesn't hurt at all and it feels like I'm flying." Her grin was manic and spread wide across her far as she used her hands, still in the chalked up grips to brush a flyaway hair from her eyes, leaving behind a streak of chalk.

He laughed, caught up in her enthusiasm. "Then I guess you have a new release combination. Let me run the numbers a bit, but if you can do that and then right into a stalder, shaposh half, we can shorten your routine by quite a bit." That was the goal with uneven bars. If you could keep everything short and connected, there was far less room for error and thus less room for deductions. He blinked at her, his smile matching hers. "Show me again."

"Wait, what was Marty doing here?" she said and Kelly came over, an eyebrow raised in question.

He'd completely forgotten that he hadn't told them. "Next Wednesday, Denver's senior elites will be coming here to compete against you two and Kaylie. I took a risk in coming here and now I'm doubling down on it. We're the two best clubs in the country and if we can beat them before we head into Nationals, it'll give us the momentum we need for National and World Team selection. So I expect you girls to be ready to go on Wednesday. Payson you'll only be doing exhibition routines, but regardless, it'll be important to show that you're fully recovered from the surgery on at least bars, but I'd like to have beam as well. Kelly I expect at least a two point victory in the All-Around, so that double on vault needs to be cleaned up"

Kelly smirked. "Oh don't worry. I can't wait to kick Lauren Tanner's ass all the way back to Denver."

"Me too," Payson muttered. "Not that I'm unhappy with the way things worked out." She smiled at Sasha and he felt his skin tingle just a bit at the true emotion in her words, "but Lauren nearly destroyed this gym over nothing. She needs to be taken down a peg or thirty."

"What about the other girl, Emily?" Sasha asked.

"She's fine," Payson said. "It's amazing she's gotten this far without any real training, but she probably maxes out right now at about a 57 or 58. I only trained with her for a couple of days, but she seemed super inconsistent. She'll probably be a little better after training with Marty for this long."

"Relax, Belov," Kelly said, smiling. "We got this in the bag."

He wanted to reprimand her for calling him by his last name, but something about it rang true. "All right, back on the bars you two. Let's get started."

They worked all morning on bars, with Kelly rotating in once she was able to do solid half routines, working her way up to full sets. Jake and Tara moved on to the Level Tens once they started to arrive and Sasha stayed with Payson and Kelly as they rotated over to beam. Kelly's routine was looking good headed into Nationals and Payson still very much had the pieces of her routine from before her surgery. It would just be a matter of numbers in the next month or so to get her ready.

"Did you see Kaylie this morning?" Sasha asked Payson as Kelly worked through her beam routine and Payson caught her breath after dismounting.

"Yeah, I stopped by on my way here. She has a stomach thing."

"Is it unusual for her to take a day off here or there?" Sasha asked and Payson looked him straight in the eye, but didn't answer. He could sense that she wasn't about to rat out her friend, but that was fine. He knew what the answer was, even if she didn't utter a word.

"Kaylie's…" she started, trying to defend her friend and clearly choosing her words very carefully. "She could use someone who believes in her gymnastics and pushes her to avoid distractions. Marty never really did. I try, but she's my friend. She needs a coach."

Sasha nodded. "I understand completely," he said, his hand landing on her shoulder and squeezing gently, a gesture that had quickly become familiar between them. "Come on, let's get back to work. We have a meet to prep for."


	10. Chapter 9.5

Lauren Tanner's strength was not the uneven bars, but even her inexpert eye could tell her that the dismount Emily was attempting, a full twisting double back tuck, was iffy at best. She'd watched her new teammate try it over and over again in the last week, but Emily only hit it once out of every three or four times and even then, it didn't look all that comfortable for her.

"Damn it," Emily said, slapping at the mat with her open palm as she fell to her knees on the latest attempt. Chalk dust flew into the air and Lauren waved it away from her face as she set up the springboard between the low bar and high for her own routine.

"You know, Ellen Beals hates when people add elements to their routines that they can't handle. You're probably better off just sticking with the double back," Lauren muttered as Emily went to rechalk her grips.

Emily grimaced. "I need that move if I'm going to make it into the top ten."

"You didn't even qualify elite until this year," Lauren reminded her. "No one expects you to make it into the top ten."

"Well I expect it."

"I'm just saying, I finished 10th last year and you just barely beat me even after I fell. The math isn't really on your side."

"Whatever," Emily shot back just as she mounted the bars.

She heard Emily pull the springboard away so Lauren ignored her, needing every ounce of focus she possessed for uneven bars. The event just didn't come naturally to her.. Her shoulders just refused to develop the flexibility to swing on the bars the way Payson could, no matter how hard she worked at it. The Gymternet was always abuzz about how she should just drop the event entirely instead of subjecting the world to her bars, but screw them. Her strength on the other three events, especially beam, made up for her bars scores and she had plans to get on that all around podium this year just to make them all suck on it.

Her body protested almost immediately upon hopping onto the high bar. Her shoulders burned through the first pirouette, her legs far past vertical by the time she finished the full turn. Her one saving grace was that she was light enough to fly away from the bar, but catch easily enough on her releases, but never really with enough rhythm in her swing to connect the elements to each other.

"Lauren," Marty's voice reverberated through the high ceilings of the gym just as she finished her double layout dismount, the one that was always criticized for it's lack of height. "Those handstands." She'd trained with Marty for five years and she'd never done a bar routine where he'd been happy with her handstands.

She nodded, but yanked at her grips. Bars were done for the day and she was glad to see the back of them.

"I just want to go one more time," Emily muttered, hauling herself up to the highbar. One swing, two and then three and into the full-in, that she landed, but barely, one knee scraping the mat as she had to lunge forward to keep her feet underneath her.

"There isn't enough consistency with that full-in," Marty said, quietly, stepping onto the mat, as Emily stood tall, raising her hands in salute the way she'd have to during a competition.

"I just landed it," Emily said, her tone filled with far more bite than even Lauren would attempt with their coach. The girl was in for a rude awakening if she made the National Team. You couldn't talk to the National Staff like they were anything less than gymnastics gods and expect to get international assignments or make it on to the Worlds team.

"Barely," Marty said, shaking his head. "You'll do the double tuck at Nationals. Ellen Beals and the rest of the National Committee don't know you at all. They'll want to see consistency from someone whose background is so unknown."

"But…"

"No buts. The rest of your bars are getting there. We'll have time to work on the dismount and perfect it after Boston."

Emily opened her mouth again, but Lauren elbowed her in the side. She didn't exactly likeKmetko, but she was the only other senior elite at Denver and literally the only person she could talk to that wasn't Summer, her dad's former secretary, current girlfriend and now one of Denver's two gym managers, along with Emily's charity case, trailer trash mother. Apparently the Kmetko's were like dirt poor and Lauren's dad felt bad about it, so he'd offered Chloe the job for way more money than she should be making, plus she'd claimed a corner of the gym to use as a personal salon, giving gymnasts and their moms manis, pedis and waxings during the day. To be fair, Lauren had taken advantage of that more than once and it was definitely one of the reasons she didn't want Emily out on her ass for mouthing off to their coach.

Both Summer and Chloe had walked in with Marty and were flipping through file folders that had the Rock's logo emblazoned on the front.

"What's going on?" she asked Marty, arching an eyebrow.

"We just got back from Boulder," Marty said, a smirk spreading across his face. "Their new coach is an old friend of mine and we've organized an invitational meet to prep for Nationals. Their senior elites against ours."

"You want me to go up against Kelly Parker and Payson Keeler three weeks before Nationals?" Lauren nearly shrieked, panic rising in her chest. Was he insane? Had she made a huge mistake following him to Denver? He dad had been so sure it was the right move.

Marty's smile widened. "That's the thing. Payson had surgery to repair her disc. She'll only be performing exhibition routines and likely only bars and beam at Nationals and if the rumors about Kelly Parker's ankle are true…" he trailed off.

"Oh my God," Lauren shrieked for an entirely different reason now. "We can so beat them. Emily's been working on her full-in all day. I totally think she can get it."

Marty rolled his eyes. "Thanks Coach Tanner, but leave routine composition to me. Now, I believe I saw a couple of boxes outside labeled GK Elite. Why don't you and Emily check it out?"

"Oh my God," Lauren said again, the high pitch making Emily wince. "Our leos are here!" She grabbed the taller girl by the wrist and dragged her out to the main entrance.

After getting in their required cross training lifting the boxes from just inside the front door to the gym office, Lauren dove into the mass of blue and red warmups and leos. It wasn't quite the same as the purple and blush she'd help choose when the Rock first opened, but there was something to be said for the more traditional colors Denver wore. Nearly everyone looked great in them and when you were competing for a spot on the US team it didn't hurt to give off a patriotic feel with your leos.

"Blue is really your color," Lauren said, as Emily held up their Day One leo, a deep royal blue with a pattern of crystals in a deep repeating v's across the chest, red piping along the collar and on the wrists.

"Thanks," Emily said, an unsure note in her voice that made Lauren smile. That's exactly the kind of relationship she'd cultivated over the last few weeks. It wouldn't do to have Emily feel too comfortable around her, teammate or not. She'd made that mistake with Kaylie and even Payson and look how that had turned out.

Lauren eyed her sideways, sitting on Summer's desk and separating out the hair ties that matched their leos. "You know if Payson really is out and can't get her bars back, that's like a dream come true for you."

"My routine won't score anywhere near what Payson's did at Nationals last year," Emily said.

Lauren shrugged. "Obviously, but the National Team is light on bar workers. If you can get that full-in, you might make it just for bars."

"Have they done that before?"

"They do it all the time."

The gears in Emily's head started to turn and Lauren could practically see the dots connecting. "I'll totally stay late with you and help you get that dismount, if you want."

"But Marty said…"

"Please, Marty won't care as long as you can land it consistently." That was probably true or at least he'd rage and throw a fit and then get over it because who was going to argue with the result.

Emily's eyes narrowed, but she asked, "Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure and then we can go back to Boulder and kick some major ass."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you'd like to see Lauren's bar routine, put "Claudia Fragapane (GBR) - Bars - 2015 European Championships (AA)" into You Tube.


	11. Chapter 10

Payson stuck the last hairpin into the pristine bun she'd mastered as a little girl and checked her reflection one more time. Miss Viola was a stickler for perfection, even when it came to flyaways. A quick layer of hairspray finished the look and she smoothed it down to be sure. Then, pulling on a small cover-up for her shoulders over the black leotard and a pair of her Rock pants from before her injury, which thanks to the new training she was doing needed rolling over at the waist, she hurried out to the hallway.

"Mom," she called back into the house, "let's go. Miss Viola will probably play whack-a-mole with my kneecaps if we're late."

"Your mum isn't here," a low voice said, coming around into the entryway from the living room. "She had to run Becca to the gym."

Payson narrowed her eyes at Sasha. "The gym where you're supposed to be coaching Kelly and Kaylie for tomorrow's meet against Denver?"

"Tara and Jake have their training well in hand until you and I return this afternoon. I know you weren't thrilled with the idea of having private sessions, so I'm coming with you."

Releasing a heavy sigh, she shook her head. "I don't need you to babysit me Sasha. Miss Viola and I don't really see eye-to-eye, but it'll be fine." She turned toward the door to grab the keys to her dad's car.

"Payson," Sasha said, closing the distance between them quickly, his hand encircling her outstretched wrist before it could find the keys. "I"m not coming with you to babysit. It's an unusual thing I'm asking of you and I know the risks you're taking in trusting me. Let me try and repay some of that, okay?" His hand slid down to hers and squeezed gently.

Her eyes met his and she studied him carefully. There was no manipulation there, no lesson he seemed to be trying to impart. He was just offering himself to her...he just wanted to be there. She pressed her hand more tightly into his. "Okay."

"Ah, there you are," Miss Viola called from behind the reception desk. Sasha held the door open for Payson and nodded to the ballet instructor over her blonde head as she brushed by him. "And Mr. Belov, so glad you could join us. I trust you brought the music I suggested."

"I did," Sasha said, patting the CD case that rested inside the inner pocket of his leather jacket.

"Music?" Payson asked and Sasha nodded.

"Didn't I tell you? We're choreographing your floor routine today," he said and nearly ran into her as she stopped dead in her tracks. He reached out and kept himself from tripping over her by grabbing her shoulders. "I told you, we wouldn't be working on your floor choreography until Miss Viola gave us the go ahead. Well, here we are."

"You really think I'm ready?" Payson asked, turning from him to face Viola.

"Well now, that's up to you, isn't it?" Viola said, but her eye were twinkling. "I know Sasha thought that the Red Shoes would be an appropriate music choice for you, but I've been watching you these past weeks and I suggested something different."

Viola strode gracefully out from behind the desk and ushered them into the smaller of the two studios within the school. Sasha watched their reflections in the mirrored wall across from the door and had to tamp down a grin from spreading across his face. The ballerina he'd seen in Payson Keeler before he'd ever agreed to coach her was standing before him, it was in the set of her shoulders, in the way she carried herself, not just as a gymnast now, but as herself. She was ready for this.

He took off his jacket and then fished around inside for the CD, moving toward the ancient looking CD player in sitting atop bench of the baby grand piano. Both Payson and Viola followed him and together they stood around staring at the player as the music began to fill the room, the drums creating a solid backbeat as the violin began to play over them and slowly they began to build into a fiery crescendo that would highlight Payson's tumbling passes in the middle of the routine and then back down to a slow outro, where a dance passage would enrapture the audience as she finished.

"So?" Sasha said, sliding his hands into the pockets of his jeans and rocking back onto his heels.

"What's it called?" she asked, her eyes closed.

"Promontory," he murmured softly.

Payson looked up at him, her mouth serious and her eyes filled with an emotion he'd begun to associate with her, it was a passion she had for the sport that perhaps rivaled only his own. "It's perfect."

"You'll be magnificent," he said, as sure of his words as he'd been of anything in his entire life. A soft flush spread over the apples of Payson's cheeks and he found himself smiling at it as she looked away.

"Excellent," Viola said, breaking the spell of the moment. "Now, shall we begin?"

Three hours later, despite only working on pieces of movement and small sections of dance at a time, Payson was drenched in sweat. He knew that before he'd come along, choreography had been a necessary evil for her, just something that filled in the gaps between her tumbling runs, but he'd promised her to make her into the greatest gymnast the world had ever seen and that meant working on every fingertip, every facial expression and every toe point until it was perfect. It was hard work.

"Freeze," Sasha called out as she landed a little awkwardly out of the pirouette that would allow her to stand near the corner of the mat for a moment without penalty. Payson froze on the spot and Viola shut the music off from her seat at the piano. "Where was the music just now as you completed that turn?"

They'd already listened to the piece dozens of times and it would be ratting around in their heads for the next year or so, he knew she knew what he meant.

"It's about to shift into the last crescendo," she answered without moving an inch.

He moved closer. Her body position was perfect, her hands extended as if reaching for something just beyond her grasp, one leg out behind her, toes pointed in a lithe line from her ankle. His hand landed lightly on her shoulder, his thumb against the pulse point of her neck. She met his eyes with her own, waiting for what he wanted from her. "And what should you be feeling? You're about to enter your final tumbling run, the music has built to this moment and the crowd is ready to erupt as you complete your routine, what you should be telling them?"

Payson didn't answer, but she moved out of the pose and his touch and nodded to Viola. "Can you back it up fifteen seconds?" she asked, turning and moving back to where she would begin the short dance into the corner.

The music echoed into the studio and Payson launched into a simple split leap landing lightly and then, into the double pirouette, finishing just as that crescendo began to build itself, her face alight with the passion and trust she had in herself and in the victory that final tumbling pass was about to secure. Sasha exhaled and in his mind's eye could see the photographers letting their shutters fly in the O2 Arena in London in that moment, a photograph they'd use for a story of how Payson Keeler, the All Around Champion, was the greatest gymnast of all time.

Viola cut the music again and silence reigned. They all looked at each other and without words began to pack up their things. They were done for the day, but really their mission had only just begun.

The blush red leo with the purple waves was as familiar as breathing to Payson. She'd been training at the Rock for two years and every season the elite girls were issued the same leo to wear to competitions. Pulling on the matching track suit, she checked her bun one more time just as she had the day before, but somehow it felt different. After just a few hours in a cramped ballet studio with Sasha, it felt like she'd shed a skin that didn't fit over her body any longer. Today was the first day of many that would lead her to London. It felt like all the days before were simply prologue and finally the story was beginning.

She'd only be competing on bars and beam today when Denver Elite - though really just Lauren Tanner and Emily Kmetko - took the floor against her and her teammates and even those routines weren't quite up to the standard she planned for Nationals. Her scores wouldn't even count towards the team total, but none of that mattered. This was a step, a small step, but important one.

Her parents and Becca were already in the car as she left the house and locked the door behind her, earbuds in, the music that had reverberated against the shining wood floors and mirrored walls of the studio over and over again playing softly. She wasn't even competing on the floor today, her tumbling nowhere near ready for competition, but this was her music now and she wanted the fight and the passion in it to exude into every aspect of her gymnastics.

The parking lot at the Rock was mobbed, as members of both gyms, plus a bunch of local media and ESPNW were there to cover it. Four girls from the US National Team and a rumored unknown were slated to compete in a small invitational just three weeks before the US Championships. It was definitely newsworthy.

The girls from Denver were just arriving when their car pulled into the parking lot and slid into their designated spot at the front of the gym.

"They gave Kelly Parker my parking spot?" she heard Lauren's voice echo over the blacktop as she got out of her family's station wagon, but she ignored the outrage. Emily Kmetko was standing just outside the gym door and Payson spared her a quick smile, before following her family inside. Sasha stood leaning up against the stairs to the gym office, just beside the vault run waiting and she made a beeline for her coach. She still couldn't get over the amazing day of training he'd worked her through the day before. That was what training for the Olympics should feel like everyday.

"Morning," she said, watching the smile spread over his face when he saw her, one she mirrored. Then he shifted to the side and revealed Marty Walsh standing beside him and her smile fell. Her mouth twisted and her lips pursed. The last time she'd talked to Marty he'd told her that she wasn't good enough, that he'd left her behind because he didn't believe in her anymore. She knew now that it was a load of crap, but the words still stung.

"Good morning Payson," Sasha said, his own smile gone as well. "Start warming up." His eyes shifted just over her head. "Ah, Kelly, Kaylie, perfect. The three of you stretch out and warm up. We'll be starting on vault, alternating gymnasts on each event. Denver's up first."

The crowd settled in after the hour of warm-ups where they moved through the events quickly, getting in a set each along with a few skills in isolation. Payson's bar routine was still a work in progress. The first half and second half were still very much separate, the skills not flowing seamlessly into one another as she planned to perform them at Nationals. Her beam, however, had come back almost immediately, except for the new dismount she was training. Still, she wanted to put together a good performance on both events, but for now she'd have to wait.

Sasha brought in local judges and the NGO had sent one of their International Judges to head up the event, mostly to give the girls feedback on their routines leading up to Nationals and then Worlds selection.

"First up on vault for Denver Elite," a local sportscaster called over the loudspeaker, "Emily Kmetko."

Briefly the sight of Emily's disastrous vault during the Rock's internal competition played behind Payson's eyes. Had that really only been a couple of months ago? The tall, lanky gymnast saluted the judges and with a deep breath raced down the runway towards the horse. A round off onto the board and then backwards onto the vault, Emily's body went ramrod straight as she twisted just once in the air and landed beautifully with her chest up and her feet firmly on the ground. Just a Yurchenko full, the same vault Payson used to warm-up rather than compete.

The score came up quickly. It was a simple vault and Emily had done it very well, but the judges could only reward what she performed so much as a 14 read out onto the scoreboard over the Parents' Viewing Room.

"Well that's not much of a challenge," Kelly muttered beside her.

Kaylie shrugged. "She only qualified to Elite this year. She has enough power to upgrade."

Payson agreed. They had two and a half years until the London Games. That was plenty of time for someone with as much natural talent as Emily to move from a full to a double.

"Payson," Sasha called, with a nod of his head and she followed him down to the end of the run to set up the vault for Kaylie. She moved the hand mat to where Kaylie liked it, horizontally over the vault run, two inches from the springboard as Sasha moved that into place.

"Now on vault for Rocky Mountain Gymnastics, Kaylie Cruz," the announcer called and Kaylie saluted as Sasha and Payson moved out of the way.

With a measured run, Kaylie came down to the horse, her entry identical to Emily's, a round off to spring backwards onto the vault, but instead she performed one and a half twists, a blind landing that made the vault much harder, although the code of points only rewarded the difficulty with a few extra tenths. Kaylie took a small hop forward and then collected herself to salute the judges.

Again, the score was quick, a 14.3. Payson gave Kaylie a quick hug to celebrate as they moved back to let Marty set up for Lauren's vault.

"How does your ankle feel?" Sasha asked Kelly. It was pretty well known that Kelly had some ankle trouble after Worlds last year, but it hadn't stopped her from winning the All Around.

"It's okay. I can do the double."

Sasha gave Kelly a blistering look. "Don't lie to me."

"It's a mock meet before Nationals. I wouldn't lie about it. My ankle is solid and Jake wrapped it up tight. I can do the double," Kelly insisted.

"Good," Sasha said, as Lauren was introduced and saluted.

The Rock's former number three gymnast sprinted down the runway like the tiny powerhouse she was and launched herself off the board head first, handspringing on the horse, her body stretching out as far as her 5'1" frame would allow with a full twist. She had to pike down as she was landing, her body struggling to keep the layout position, but it was a good vault and Payson's eyebrows shot up. It wasn't so much the vault itself, but what it implied for the future. Lauren already had a halfway decent form on the vault and if she could add another half twist, she'd have a Rudi, a vault worth 6.3 and one of the harder ones performed in the world. It would make her a major player on the US National team on two events. It gave her versatility, something the National Team Coordinator Ellen Beals was always preaching to them.

Lauren's score flashed on the board, a 14.7. The judges hadn't been too harsh on the pike down and rewarded the rest of the vault appropriately.

She followed Sasha back to the vault and let him move the springboard before she settled the mat down again, laying it vertically against the run and a little further away from the edge of the board.

"Now vaulting, reigning National and World Champion, Kelly Parker."

Kelly's vault was worth a tenth of a point less than Lauren's in the code and she'd have to battle against those form issues she'd been working to clean up over the last couple of weeks to take the lead.

Payson moved off to the side and Sasha stood next to her, both their eyes trained on Kelly as she saluted and then took off. Her run was controlled and steady into the round off, throwing her hands back onto the vault and propelling her body around, one knee bending slightly in the air as she entered the second twist. She landed on the center of the mat, but took a decent sized hop forward, but still, a good vault.

She saluted and Payson held up a hand for her as she came off the mat. Kelly's eyebrows shot up, but she high-fived Payson and smirked.

"Your legs are still sloppy," Sasha muttered, but gave her a quick squeeze from the side as her score lit up at the top of the board, a 14.8.

The first rotation was over and the Rock was in the lead. Kelly and Payson lined up behind Sasha with Kaylie falling into line and they marched together towards bars. Denver led off on vault, so the Rock would be up first and after everyone had a chance to warm up briefly, Kaylie moved on to the mat and saluted the judges.

"Come on, Kaylie," Payson shouted and Kelly echoed quickly. She knew Kaylie had been working on a double layout off of the bars to replace the double pike she'd been competing since she was a Level 10. Bars weren't Kaylie's best event, but she had a decent swing thanks to her light frame. It was little form errors here and there that plagued her and a general lack of endurance that made her routine a little labored at the end. She muscled up to her last handstand before she swung around three times, building momentum into the double layout. Her legs were separated to give her a little more control over the skill, but she landed it decently enough, a wide smile spreading across her face.

Sasha let out a, "Yeah! Great job, Kaylie!" as she saluted and then ran over to them, hugging everyone, even Kelly responded with a small pat on her back, as if no one had ever hugged her in her life.

The scoring on bars took a little longer than vault, but Kaylie's routine was relatively straightforward and she didn't have any major errors, so it wasn't long until a 14.5, the best score she'd ever received on bars was posted, giving her a 28.9, a great start.

"Now on bars for Denver Elite, Lauren Tanner!"

Lauren was standing near the bars, but her eyes weren't focused on the apparatus. Instead she was glaring at the Parents' Viewing Area. Payson followed the path of her gaze and it landed on Steve, Lauren's father and his girlfriend. Whatever was going through Lauren's head, it wasn't good if the scowl on her lips and the furrow between her brows were any indication.

"C'mon Lauren," Marty said, from beside the bars and for a moment Payson felt the urge to cheer her former teammate on as well, but she kept silent.

Lauren's routine had improved since moving to Denver. She remembered seeing it when they went to try and get Marty back, the same day that Sasha had arrived, but they would never be anything spectacular. She caught her last release and then swung into a double layout, her body perfectly straight, holding the position the judges were looking for and landing with just a small hop forward. It was bars that had kept Lauren out of the main all around contenders last year when she couldn't get through a routine without a major error. If she managed to duplicate that routine at Nationals, she'd be in good shape in the all around.

The score went up fast, a 14.0 on the dot. Not good, but definitely not a disaster.

Kelly was up next. She helped the other girl chalk the bars, hanging from the top bar, making sure the layer of chalk was thick enough to help Kelly maintain her grip, but smooth enough not to get in the way.

"Now on bars, Kelly Parker!"

Kelly swung bars the way Kaylie did. Her lightness and small frame made her swing easy and fluid, but she was more polished than Kaylie, connecting her elements with ease, whereas Kaylie performed most of hers in isolation, creating a sense of disjointedness where the judges were looking for a routine made up of continuous movement.

Dismounting with a full-in and sticking it with a flourish, Payson actually let out a small shriek. It was a really good routine and would bring in a big score. The Rock was starting to pull away from Denver, a few tenths at a time.

As Kelly moved back towards them, she fist-bumped Sasha and then Payson pulled her into a hug. "Great job!" Kelly actually hugged her back.

Kelly's score posted, a 14.8 and the world champ pursed her lips. The score felt low, but Payson had been watching the routine from behind the bars and hadn't been able to see what the handstands had looked like. Maybes she'd missed a couple and the judges took it out on her score.

"Rounding out bars for Denver Elite, Emily Kmetko," the announcer called.

"Let's go, Emily!" Lauren called out, her eyes locked on where Payson stood with Kaylie and Kelly, not even looking at her own teammate. Clearly her cheering wasn't really about Emily.

Emily's routine was relatively basic, devoid of any complicated connections, although her Tkachev was high and caught easily, it wasn't until the dismount that Payson's gasped. Emily did three giants, building up speed and then let go, but not early enough to get the height necessary for the full-in she was apparently attempting. She barely finished the second flip of the dismount and landed on her knees with a painful and embarrassing thwack. The crowd groaned collectively and Marty stepped over to her and spoke quietly. It was clear Emily wasn't injured, just mortified as she waited a second and then another before standing and saluting the judges. The vein in Marty's forehead was throbbing, a sure sign of his displeasure and Lauren didn't say a word as Emily moved off to the side, to await her score.

Mistakes in gymnastics were always made that much more excruciating by the amount of time it took for the judges to decide just how terribly you'd screwed up. They had to figure out what skill you had been attempting and then deduct for every thing that had gone wrong leading up to the fall, plus a full point for the fall itself. The minutes ticked by as Payson chalked up and Sasha moved to prep the high bar and Kaylie the low. Emily was standing near her, markedly away from both Marty and Lauren.

Payson blew the chalk off her grips and then turned to meet her eye. "Keep at it, Emily. You'll get it."

"Thanks," the taller girl said with a small watery smile. "Not in time for Nationals."

Shaking her head, Payson gave her a small smile back. "Maybe in time for London?"

Emily laughed a little at that. "Yeah, maybe for then."

Her score dinged onto the leaderboard, completing the official standings for the second rotation, a 13.6.

1\. Kelly Parker - 29.6

2\. Kaylie Cruz - 28.8

3\. Lauren Tanner - 28.7

4\. Emily Kmetko - 27.6

Rocky Mountain Gymnastics: 58.4

Denver Elite: 56.3

"Now, in exhibition on bars for the Rock, last year's National All Around Silver Medalist, Payson Keeler."

Sasha had finished prepping the bars and moved by her with a small squeeze of her shoulder and Payson took a deep breath, hearing that deep melody in the back of her mind as she stepped between the high bar and the low. Saluting the judges, she swung on to the low bar, and then up into a full pirouette, then back down, up and over the low bar to the high, kipping straight up into a handstand, making sure to be vertical atop bar before letting her momentum fall back down and around. She turned halfway, changing grips for the release and catch of her piked Jaeger, but didn't connect it back down to the low bar with the Pak. That connection had been shaky all week at practice. Instead she swung up and then back around before performing the Pak, a quick somersault between the bars and catching the low bar and swinging up into a handstand again. Eventually she'd simply transition straight back up to the high bar, but that connection wasn't quite ready yet either. Instead she allowed herself another swing to gather her momentum before performing the Shaposhnikova with a half turn up to the high bar. Another handstand and she swung down and off the bar with a full in to finish, the dismount that would be replaced with a triple twisting flyaway hopefully prior to the World Championships. Her lungs burned, the full routine one of the few she'd managed in the week leading up to the meet, but she'd hit and that's what counted. The music in her head ended with a flourish and she saluted to end the routine.

The judges didn't take long, and flashed up a 15.1, still a world class bars score and in line with where she'd been last year on the event even with her back injury. As soon as she could nail those connections that score would tick up towards gold medal territory.

"Wow," Kelly said, holding up both hands. Chalk flew everywhere as they high-fived.

"Awesome routine, Pay!" Kaylie said, hugging her quickly, before they all undid their grips and prepared for beam.

"It's getting there," Sasha said, a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "Getting there."

Together they marched towards the second half of the competition.

Sasha's eyes crept towards the scoreboard and he allowed himself a moment of joy, at least on the inside. He was famous for his stoicism in competition and he wasn't about to relinquished that reputation during an invitational in his own gym. This was exactly what he wanted for Kaylie and Kelly, a quick confidence boost and for Payson, an event with no pressure to allow her pain free gymnastics to shine before the harsh spotlight of Nationals.

"Nice job, ladies," he said, as they finished their warm-ups. "Now let's really start to pull away."

Denver led off the beam and that girl Marty had arranged a scholarship was up first. Sasha frowned as she worked through a very low level routine. Her lack of disciplined training was apparent when she attempted that full-in off bars, but on beam it became all the more clear. Her technique was a mess and her confidence level on the apparatus virtually nonexistent. The only thing keeping her on the beam was pride, but that wasn't nothing. She was practically bursting with natural ability, however and Sasha almost envied Marty that he'd get a chance to try and harness it. The question was, would she let him?

Emily dismounted with a simple gainer full, a move more likely to be seen in college gymnastics versus the international elite level, but it seemed she was just relieved to get through the routine without falling and again, that wasn't nothing.

The score came quickly, a 13.8, an indictment both of her low difficulty and hesitant execution.

"All right, let's go Kaylie."

Much like Emily's beam routine, Kaylie's routine was relatively simple, the difference was she performed it with the confidence of an athlete who'd trained the routine for years under the guidance of the best coaches. A solid double back out of a round off finished the routine and Kaylie stuck the landing, smiling widely for the judges and clapping hands with both Payson and Kelly before waiting for her score.

It was a solid 14.5, right around where all her scores seemed to hover. Kaylie Cruz was a true all-around gymnast, but unfortunately, the desire to hit her routine seemed to outweigh her desire to outshine her competition and it was reflected in her reliably average scores.

"Now on beam for Denver Elite, Lauren Tanner."

Sasha's eyes moved from his own gymnast to the girl who'd finished 3rd on beam the year before, that score pulling her all around ranking up to the top ten, barely. Mounting with a front tuck, she stuck it cold, raising a hand in the air with a flick to prove it to the judges. A quick series of leaps brought her across the beam, before she set herself for a back handspring to two layout step outs, a difficult combination that she made look easy. Her eyes trained on a spot on the four inches, Lauren launched into a split leap, with a quarter turn and facing the judges directly with a confident flick of her fingers. A quick full turn and then she set herself for a moment before she moved into a round off and launched her body up into the air with a full twist, landing on two feet with just the barest flicker of a wobble. His eyebrows shot up. Impressive. Settling herself at the end of the beam, she flipped into a back handspring and then another to two feet before nailing a double pike, her chest the tiniest bit down as she landed, but quickly rising and saluting the judges.

He did the math quickly in his head. The routine was out of a 6.8, as difficult as the one Payson would perform today, though the type of skills were like night and day. Tanner was all power while Payson's longer lines would create a totally different effect.

The judges were quick to reward Lauren and she let out a high pitched shriek at her 15.5, moving her ahead of Kaylie into second place. Sasha made eye contact with Marty on the other side of the beam. He hadn't expected that. Marty smirked and Sasha shrugged, before nodding to Kelly.

Kelly Parker was a remarkably similar gymnast to Kaylie Cruz or at least she would be if someone could light a fire under Kaylie's ass for more than a few minutes at a time. Their skill sets were virtually identical, but the complexity of Kelly's routine along with the dedication she put into connecting the various elements of each exercise truly set her apart. Beam wasn't her best event, but her routine was certainly one the US would eventually want to use at the World Championships in Rio later that year, the perfect table setter in a team final where three girls would compete and all three scores would count.

Two back handsprings connected into a solid two and a half twist, with just a small shuffle of her feet ended Kelly's routine.

"Excellent job, Kelly," Sasha said, and as the score popped up, a 15.0, they watched Kelly's name slide beyond Lauren Tanner's to the top of the leaderboard and the Rock extended their lead over Denver to just under 3 points.

1\. Kelly Parker - 44.6

2\. Lauren Tanner - 44.2

3\. Kaylie Cruz - 43.3

4\. Emily Kmetko - 41.4

Rocky Mountain Gymnastics: 87.9

Denver Elite: 85.6

Again, Payson, only performing for exhibition, stepped up last for her final routine of the day. Sasha stood with her, waiting for her name to be announced as she marked her dismount take off spot across the top of the beam with some chalk. His hand landed upon her shoulder and squeezed lightly which she answered with a small nod.

"Now on balance beam, for the Rock, last year's National Beam Gold Medalist, Payson Keeler."

Payson saluted and then turned to the beam, her eyes laser focused. Sasha's fingers twitched as she took two steps into a round off bouncing off a springboard and turning halfway, catching the beam with her hands, stepping down on to the beam and lifting her chin to signal the skill complete. Using some of the choreography they'd integrated into her beam routine from her ballet classes, she set up for her first major test, a double turn - something hard enough for most gymnasts, but hers with a leg extended out and held straight. Landing without hesitation, she moved towards the end of the beam, arms creating the illusion of dance, keeping her toes pointed as she stepped. She set herself again for a side aerial, landing on one foot and keeping her momentum going to connect into another side aerial, the lack of hesitation giving her a connection bonus. Her body constantly moving, she flipped over into a front aerial, connecting it straight into a split leap, traveling across the beam. Then she set herself again with a deep breath she launched herself backwards into two back handsprings, pushing with some extra power on the second and launching herself into the air into a layout, her body perfectly straight in the air, landing lightly at the other end of the beam with her heel barely a centimeter away from the edge. Almost without pausing, she took one step and then another, letting her body rise into a switch split ring leap, her back leg curling to her head, her front moving past the required 180 degrees, showcasing her flexibility. She landed neatly and followed it with a sissone and then a simple split leap, once again adding in some connection bonus to her score. Then finally, some more choreography to get her to that chalk line she'd drawn before the routine. The timing judge dinged the ten second bell and after letting a slow breathe out, one Sasha mirrored, she threw a round off, back handspring into a two and a half twist, her body extended fully into the layout and sticking the landing.

The crowd, mostly people who'd watched Payson train every day, erupted. Kaylie met Payson before she was off the mat and hugged her tightly and it seemed even Kelly Parker couldn't help herself, throwing her arms around Payson as her score was announced, a 15.6. The highest score of the meet and a fitting end of her day, even if the scores didn't count.

"Beautiful," Sasha said, as she hugged him tightly and he spun her around. If Sasha were a betting man - and he was - he'd wager all that old endorsement money he had still rotting away in his accounts there would be many more moments like this leading up to London.

The two teams lined up and made their way to the final event of the competition, floor. Barring a major implosion from two of the best floor workers in the world, the Rock had the meet sewn up.

Kaylie led off and it was the first time Sasha had seen her perform a floor routine in competition, in person. The charm and dazzle exuded from every inch of her skin as she danced and tumbled her way across the floor. The music, a pop mix echoed through the speakers and Kaylie had the crowd eating out of her hands by the second tumbling pass. This Kaylie Cruz was the one he wanted to work with, now the question was, how to translate the joy of performing into her training?

She dismounted with a stuck double tuck and a huge smile on her face, waving to the crowd that cheered wildly once she was done.

"Not bad, Cruz," Kelly Parker said when she jogged back to them and Kaylie rolled her eyes before they fist bumped, followed by another one from Payson.

The score followed shortly after, a 14.6, giving Kaylie a 57.9 for the day. All in all, right where Sasha thought she'd score. If he could get her to land that double arabian more consistently before Nationals and clean up a few of her dance elements she could probably edge out a 15 on floor, making her a real contender for the Worlds team, though likely only as a specialist.

"Let's go Lauren!" Emily Kmetko called out just after Lauren was introduced. Sasha nearly choked on his tongue when the music kicked up and it was a slinky burlesque song blaring through the Rock's speakers. He had to hand it to the Tanner girl, she sold the hell out of the routine, but he doubted that Ellen Beals would want to display that routine to the world. Still her tumbling was solid and powerful and her landings generally pretty clean. A tweak here or there and she could be a real force to be reckoned with on floor.

Lauren practically bounded off the floor and hugged Marty tight before launching herself at Emily, who looked shocked as hell, but hugged her back.

The score posted and the crowd applauded and cheered with a ripple of shock in there for good measure. It was a 14.5, just a tenth off of Kaylie's score and easily surpassing the other girl all around, putting Lauren at the top of the scoreboard with a 58.7.

"Now on floor, for the Rock's final routine of the competition, Kelly Parker!"

If Kaylie Cruz was a natural performer, he didn't quite know how to label Kelly Parker. She was the full package. Not only did she have the crowd clapping along within the first few beats of her floor music, but the combination of power tumbling and athleticism plus the high energy of her performance was truly something to behold. A double layout to start, then a two and a half twist to sissone, a full-in and then finishing with a double pike. The routine never let up until the music died. Other than the unfortunate bit of choreography that resembled a flapping chicken, something he'd tried to convince her to take out, but she flat out refused, the routine was awesome.

She ran off the floor to thunderous applause and more fistbumps from Payson and Kaylie and then within a few moments, her score, a 15.1 popped up and her name moved to the top of the leaderboard ahead of Lauren Tanner with a 59.7.

"Told you I'd beat her by a point, Belov," Kelly muttered and Sasha fought back a bark of laughter. He turned to his other side and patted Kaylie on the back. She had expected to finish second, no doubt, and there she was .8 behind the girl who'd consistently placed behind her since they'd turned elite. Maybe that's what Kaylie needed, maybe a loss would motivate her going into Nationals.

The last performer was Emily Kmetko and as a catchy rock song reverberated from speakers, Sasha's eyes widened at the powerful, if slightly uncontrolled, tumbling from the girl no one had heard of until a couple of months ago. This must have been what Marty saw in her. The raw talent. He certainly saw the appeal. Most elite girls were nearly finished products by the time they reached the senior ranks. This girl, well she had the talent, now all she needed was the coaching.

Emily finished her routine with a flourish and an almost bashful salute to the judges and a shy wave to the crowd.

It was a great way to end the competition. HIS girls had hit their routines and Sasha nodded in agreement when Emily's score of a 14.8 lit up the board, a world class score for the gymnast from the YMCA. If she let Marty coach her, really coach her, she could be great.

The final scoreboard lit up brightly.

1\. Kelly Parker - 59.7

2\. Lauren Tanner - 58.7

3\. Kaylie Cruz - 57.9

4\. Emily Kmetko - 56.2

Rocky Mountain Gymnastics: 117.6

Denver Elite: 114.9

Marty crossed the gym, his hand extended. "Nice meet, Belov."

Sasha took his hand, shaking it firmly. "Yeah you too."

"Nationals should be interesting," Marty said, his eyes flickering to Payson. "How's her pain?"

"Gone," Sasha said, unable to keep the edge out of his voice. He didn't know what would have happened had he not been able to convince Payson and her parents to deal with her back issues before Nationals, but his gut told him it wouldn't have been a pretty sight. "Utterly and completely gone."

With a sharp nod Marty said, "Good." It looked like he was about to say something else, but instead he shook his head and released Sasha's hand. "See you in Boston, old friend."

"Yeah, you too."

Sasha stepped away and looked at his girls, standing together, all smiles and laughter holding the trophy he'd ordered and was thankful would be remaining at the Rock. His girls who all had very little in common except for the wildest dream in the world. Kaylie, the girl whose fire he finally understood and could now try to nurture; Kelly, whose drive and determination made her great and Payson, with that low, burning passion refusing to be denied.

Boston. Nationals. Three weeks.

They'd be ready.


	12. Chapter 11

The annex was sweltering in the early July heat. Even with its full wall of garage doors left wide open, the stagnant air refused relief to the gymnasts training into the Rock's pits. All the apparatus's in the annex were set up with pits of foam and cushion there to catch the gymnasts as they trained skills that weren't ready for landing on a competition surface.

Payson stood at the end of the vault run, stripped down to just a sports bra and compression shorts to try and battle back against the heat. She leaned over, bent at the waist, hands on her knees as she tried to catch her breath. She was going to get this. She'd had this vault down cold before her surgery and there was no reason she couldn't get it again, especially now that her back felt as good as new.

"You need more lift off the block," Sasha said, motioning with his own arms, throwing them both forward violently, fully extended over his head, mimicking the force she'd need to get enough height on her handspring double twist.

Standing tall, Payson nodded and sucked in some air, finally catching her breath before she coated her hands and the insides of her thighs with chalk. Her feet had hit the pit prior to completing the second twist in her last attempt and vaulting that way was just asking for an injury.

"Hold," Sasha said, making her wait, as would so often happen in competition.

She took another breath and swiped at the bottoms of her feet with her chalk covered hands.

"Go," Sasha said finally and she nodded, stepping up to the edge of the vault run, eyeing her mark at the side to make sure she started her approach from correct spot on the mat. Pulling in a breath and letting it go slowly, she leapt into the air to start herself off and then pounded down the runway, her feet hitting the springboard with all the force she needed to propel her body headfirst into the vault, her hands snapping forward at the same time, hitting the vault table near its center allowing it to ricochet her into the air. She launched into the air, body as straight as a pin, her arms crossing over her chest to make herself more aerodynamic as she began to twist, once then twice, then opening up for the landing, her feet not hitting the foam of the pit until her body was completely set and then she was buried in with the pieces of fluff and cushion. That felt perfect, more perfect than it had ever felt before.

"Yes," Sasha bellowed from above her, his grin manic, his own skin flush from the heat.

Payson climbed towards the edge, keeping her mouth closed to keep from inhaling disgusting bits of fluff. She took his hand, allowing him to pull her out of the pit and then straight into his arms. She laughed as he hugged her tight, spinning her around so she could set her feet on solid ground.

"I thought you didn't want me to do this vault," she said, feeling and hearing the chuckle against his chest.

"I didn't want you to do it twisting yourself into the ground, barely landing it. If you keep vaulting the way you just did then I'm all for it."

Payson pulled away from him and then laughed at the sweat outline her body made on his t-shirt. "Sorry," she apologized, cringing. That was pretty gross.

"Don't worry about it," he said, waving off her apology and letting his hand fall to her shoulder, squeezing gently. "Let's end on that note. You head to lunch. Bars and beam, full sets after."

Payson nodded, grabbing her water bottle and towel before moving out of the annex and out into the small alleyway between it and the main gym. She turned and saw Nicky Russo, the top male gymnast at the Rock falling into step beside her. He must have been training in the annex too, though she hadn't noticed.

"Hey Keeler," he said.

"Hi," she said, wiping the sweat off her face with her towel, trying to hurry off the hot black asphalt burning the bottoms of her feet and back into the air conditioned gym.

"That was an awesome handspring double," he said, reaching out and holding the door open for her.

"Thanks. It's a work in progress," she said said, feeling gooseflesh breakout over her body as the cool air hit her overheated skin.

"Looked competition ready to me. It sucks that Sasha won't let you compete All Around at Nationals," Nicky said.

"Yeah," she said, trailing off. It wasn't anything she hadn't thought herself. Her endurance was almost back to where it'd been before her surgery. Her bars and beam had come together beautifully. Vault looked just fine and her floor routine was starting to feel as natural as breathing. She probably could compete All Around at Nationals, but that wasn't her call.

"I still can't believe he made you have surgery just two months before Nationals. I mean what the hell, all you had to do was manage your pain between now and Worlds and have the surgery after. A couple of cortisone shots and physical therapy…" he trailed off.

Payson blinked at him. He seemed angrier about it than she was, at least now that she saw the wisdom behind Sasha's thinking. "What's done is done and now I can concentrate on winning Worlds pain free. The Olympics are two and a half years away."

"Yeah, but it's a damn shame. I was looking forward to winning gold medals together in Boston," he said, leaning into her a little, his bicep nudging hers.

"I wonder what Austin Tucker will have to say about that," she said, her eyes dancing at him. It was a little rough to bring up his rival, but she found herself a touch annoyed at his anger towards Sasha, even if it was in her defense.

Nicky groaned. "Don't even get me started on that guy."

"No love for the face of Kobalt sunglasses?" she joked. Austin's face had been plastered all over magazines and TVs and had ever since he won his unexpected Olympic gold.

"Have you seen him?" Nicky burst out, eyes rolling. "He wears them everywhere, even to training. And those rumors about him winning his All Around medal in Beijing hung over, totally accurate. The guy went on a bender in the Olympic Village. It's ridiculous. I don't know why the NGO puts up with his shit."

"I guess it works for him," Payson said, seeing Kelly and Kaylie coming out of the locker room with their lunches in hand. "Listen, I'll see you later, okay?"

"Definitely," Nicky said and smiled at her brightly, before heading towards the other side of the gym.

Payson moved towards her two teammates who'd spent the morning running through bars and beam while she'd trained in the annex, both of them doing full routines in the final push towards Nationals.

"I got your lunch, Payson," Kaylie called and she nodded, stopping quickly at her locker to grab a t-shirt to pull on over her sports bra before following them to the small breakroom.

Kelly and Kaylie were already seated at one of the small tables, basking in the air that was even cooler than the rest of the gym. Payson pulled up a chair and popped open the top of the tupperware holding her grilled chicken and steamed vegetables.

"So…" Kaylie trailed off. "You and Nicky Russo?"

Payson looked up from her food and snorted. "You mean me and my handspring double twist. Sasha was finally happy with it before we wrapped up this morning."

"I don't know, you two looked pretty cozy walking back in here," Kaylie pressed on.

Kelly rolled her eyes. "Nicky Russo is such a troll. A troll with an inferiority complex about the same shape and size as the reigning men's Olympic champion."

"Yeah, he's really not a fan of Austin's is he?" Payson asked, looking out the large window that opened up to the rest of the gym where Nicky and Carter were working on the still rings.

"Who cares about Austin Tucker," Kaylie said. "Nicky really seems sweet though, Pay. You should give him a shot. Maybe you guys could double with me and Carter."

"Gag me," Kelly said and Kaylie glared at her.

"Thanks, Kay, but really, I'm not interested in Nicky Russo," Payson insisted, even though her eyes were drawn back through the window. Was he interested? She couldn't ever remember a boy being interested in her before. They always seemed to look at Kaylie or Lauren and now Kelly. She didn't want to date him, not really, but it was nice to be appreciated. He must have felt her gaze and he turned to look at her, a small smile on his face and she spun back in her seat, embarrassed at being caught.

"Yeah, you seem really uninterested," Kaylie teased.

"Ugh, gross. Can we talk about anything else, like I don't know, how Cruz let that braided bitch of the beam beat her last week and how that cannot happen when we're in Boston."

Kaylie rolled her eyes. "I had an off day. There is no way her floor should have scored anywhere near mine. She's going down at Nationals."

Payson nodded to be supportive, but she'd reviewed the tapes of their Invitational. Lauren's routines had been solid and her beam had been spectacular. Kaylie was going to have to really up her game in the next two weeks if she wanted to come out on top. Kelly met her eyes, while Kaylie's gaze drifted to the window where Carter was still working on the rings. She met Kelly's eyes across the table and the other girl just shrugged in defeat. They couldn't want it for Kaylie, that was only something she could do for herself.

Sasha balled up the napkin he'd used to wipe his mouth, tossing it into the garbage can beside his desk, brushing a few crumbs from his shirt as he stood.

"Kim, I'm going to go get the girls started," he said, grabbing his clipboard from his desk and standing with every intention of leaving he office behind for the day.

"What?" a voice called from the door. "No time for an old friend?"

MJ Martin looked every bit as good as the last time he'd seen her, of course she was fully clothed, smiling and not wearing just a sheet while he bellowed at her about her infidelity with Marty on the floor, flat out on his back after taking a right hook to the jaw.

A soft huff of disbelief escaped his chest and he shook his head, an involuntary smirk rising at the corne rof his mouth. "What the hell are you doing here?" he asked, no real bite to his words.

"Obviously come back to win your heart after all the time," she said, eyes twinkling with mirth and he barked out a laugh.

Sasha turned to his gym manager. "Kim this is MJ Martin, sports manager and if I'm not mistaken, a consultant for the NGO."

"We've met," Kim said, standing and holding out a hand. The two women shook hands. "MJ came by the Rock last year to film Payson's, oh what was it called?"

"Sizzle piece," MJ said, "media packets for the networks that they can use for their coverage of Nationals and Worlds this year."

Sasha groaned. "Exactly how much time is this going to take away from training?"

"None, we can schedule it all for Sunday if you like. I'll only be around the gym for a day or two at the most. Since there are so many potential National Team members between here and Denver, we'll be doing a shoot with everyone, if we can manage it. That going to be alright with you, Sash?"

He knew what she was asking. Was he going to be able to handle being in the same place as her and Marty for the duration of whatever it was she had planned. "Just fine, as long as we can agree on one thing. While you're here, no agenting. Keep your hands off my athletes."

She nodded, seriously. "Agreed," she said, her eyes lighting up, "so long as you tell me where I can put my hands."

Sasha couldn't help his smile. Ten years was a long time and bygones were bygones. It was nice that this dynamic they'd always shared came back so easily.

"I think that's my cue," Kim said, slipping out of the office.

"Okay, so talk me through it," MJ said, suddenly all business, nodding out the window. "Who has the edge?"

"In what?" he asked, pushing off the glass and following her to the balcony. "Earning potential?"

"You're hilarious," she quipped back. "At Nationals. I don't want to find myself in the editing room with no footage of the winner. Help me cover my ass."

"Love to," he said, hovering for the briefest of seconds behind her and letting his breath fall hot on her neck and then stepping to the side when she froze at the almost contact.

"Sasha," she warned and he stepped even further away.

"It's actually quite simple. Payson," he said, nodding towards the girl he'd spent the morning with in the annex working on her vault as she stretched out against the beam. "She's almost completely back from her surgery, but there isn't enough time between now and Boston to get her floor back and I'd just as soon avoid over training on vault if she can't compete all around anyway. Barring any fluke mistakes, she'll probably take both bars and beam and once she's ready for Worlds."

"She looks different than last year," MJ said, "you know aside from not being in crippling pain."

"We've...made some changes," Sasha said, unable to tamp down the smile that crept up whenever he thought of their progress.

"Right, I'll make sure I'm awash in Payson Keeler footage."

"I think that's a very good idea." Sasha glanced at the calculating look in MJ's eye and despite her assurance that she'd keep away from the girls as they trained, he knew that buried in that brilliant mind of hers was a full out proposal of what she could do for Payson if she decided to go pro.

"What about Kaylie Cruz? Gorgeous, Latina, speaks Spanish too right? Any chance?"

"Total winning performer, as you've obviously noticed, but it's almost impossible to light a fire under her ass for more than a few minutes at a time. She's very...normal."

MJ laughed. "You say that as if it's a bad thing."

It was a thought he'd had about Kaylie more than once. She was a gifted athlete and had the ability, it just seemed she wasn't motivated enough to truly realize her potential. Even after her third place finish at the invitational, she'd seemed angry, but her training had remained uninspired. "In elite gymnastics, it is."

"And that leaves," MJ trailed off, flicking her fingers to where Kelly stood near Kaylie as they warmed up for vault.

"Kelly Parker, yeah. She's managed to upgrade on vault, though I'm not as thrilled with her progress as I'd like to be, her Yurchenko double is serviceable and relatively clean. Beyond that there really hasn't been time for her to upgrade anywhere else, at least not with that mother of her stealing her away for a few days here and there for endorsement commitments."

"There are ways to balance those out with…" MJ trailed off and then said, "Sheila." Her eyes were focused over Sasha's shoulder.

"Matilda," Sheila answered and Sasha could hear the smirk in her voice. "Are you here to sizzle the girls?"

MJ scoffed. "They aren't bacon, Sheila, but yes, I'm here to get some shots of the girls before Nationals. We were thinking about setting up something for Sunday afternoon at a local park."

"Well, try not to infantilize them too much this year. Kelly is eighteen now and her sponsors have been clamoring for her to have a more mature look going into Worlds this year."

"Not a playground, Sheila. Nature, the trails, the Colorado air that seems to be doing half the National Team hopefuls a world of good."

"Excellent. Text me the details and I'll make sure Kelly is there. Now, Sasha, I'd like to talk to you about..."

"Sorry, Mrs. Baboyan, have to get down to the floor. MJ, I'll catch up with you later." He had a whole afternoon of coaching ahead of him and worse came to worse he'd make it up to MJ later. Hell, he might even enjoy that.

He was down the stairs before Sheila could respond and his mouth twisted into a frown when he saw Payson stretching against the beam, Nicky Russo hovering around the edge of the mat, sipping at a cup of water. "Thinking competing on the women's side, Russo?" he barked. "You might make a decent splash, but the bikini wax might kill you."

"Uhhh," Russo managed to utter.

Sasha rolled his eyes. "Go away now, Nicholas."

Nicky nodded quickly and tossed the plastic cup in the recycling container beside the water cooler before making a fast retreat.

Payson raised her eyebrows at him as he grinned widely at her. "What?"

"Is that how it's going to be?"

Sasha's smile spread across his whole face. He couldn't deny it gave him a little thrill of pleasure at making the boy scamper away so quickly. He had to get his kicks where he could these days. "I'm afraid it is, Payson. I'm afraid it is."

"I'm not interested in Nicky Russo," she muttered, like a mantra. Was she trying to convince him or herself? Either way, it was cause for concern.

"Glad to hear it," he shot back and she flushed, obviously not intending him to hear her. "Now get up there," he motioned to the beam, "and show me what you've got."

She moved to the end of the beam to set up her springboard for her mount and moving out of his line of sight, he saw Carter Anderson leaning up against the wall that ran along the vault runner, saying something that made Kaylie look at him like the sun and stars shone out of his arse. He ran a frustrated hand over his face, feeling the prickle of two days stubble against his fingertips. They didn't have time for this shite. He wasn't an idiot. He knew the young women he trained weren't robots, but boys like Nicky Russo and Carter Anderson had years before hitting their peaks as athletes, these girls had the next few years and maybe another four before it was all over for them. He knew the girls understood that, but they were young and it was hard to see the forest for the trees when someone you were attracted to smiled in your direction. He knew that better than anyone, thinking back to the woman he could still hear bickering with Sheila on the office balcony. Maybe it was time to have a conversation with his senior elite men, a friendly little chat, as it were.

Training was just wrapping up for the night and it was one of those rare days where nothing had gone wrong. Just a week and a half from Nationals and everything was smooth sailing, at least as far as the gymnastics was concerned. His athletes were all either in the treatment room with the trainers or showering and heading home for the night when Sasha settled himself on the cheap garden furniture he'd found at a local car boot sale. He stood just as a group of the men left the gym, all black slaps and hand claps that turned into one armed hugs.

"Anderson, Russo!" he called across the car park. "Can I have a word."

The two younger men jogged over to him, gym bags slung over their shoulders, exchanging sidelong, half-panicked glances. Good, they were nervous.

"Gentlemen, take a seat," Sasha said, motioning towards the green plastic chairs beneath an umbrella.

"Um, okay," Carter said, sliding into one of the seats and Nicky following behind him.

"So," Sasha said, pleasantly, "I'm going to make this short and to the point, my girls are off limits." Nicky flushed, but Carter had the gall to look confused. "They don't date. They don't loiter around the chalk box batting their lashes at the ever so cute gym studs. They're here to train for the biggest event of their lives and for most of them this Olympic cycle if their only chance to realize their dreams. These young women, they peak in their teens. The two of you, you won't peak until if you're early twenties, if you peak at all," he added, needing them to understand just how mediocre he found their gymnastics. "The point is, you have time. They don't and you need to respect that."

Both young men nodded and Nicky even made to stand.

"Excuse me, I wasn't finished," he continued. "If you don't, if you get in the way of these girls realizing their dreams, if you disrespect them not only will they resent you for the rest of their lives, I'll make sure your career at the Rock is finished and I'll do my personal best to ruin you. The both of you."

He smiled, standing. "Are we clear?"

"Yes, sir," Carter responded quickly, standing as well.

Nicky hesitated for a moment, before pushing out of his seat. "Clear," he finally said.

"Excellent," Sasha said, "have a good night." He quickly turned his back on them, his point made and leapt into his trailer, shutting the door behind him. He didn't know if it would have the desired effect, but at least they'd been put on notice.

He was just about to grab the a bowl to put together his usual dinner of cereal, the only thing he could be reasonably sure he could prepare without burning the trailer to the ground when a light knock sounded on the hollow aluminium door. Had one, or both, of those boys lost their minds?

Pushing open the door to the trailer, he was about to lay into whichever rock head had thought their conversation wasn't over, but instead he was greeted with MJ's smiling face, a bottle of wine in one hand, a small bag in the other.

"There was nothing on the telly, so…" she trailed off and smiled at him in that same way that had his younger self willing to sell his soul to the devil.

Stepping back, he held the door open for her and she stepped inside, brushing up against him. She set down the bottle on the small table jutting out of the far wall, dropped the bag to the floor and turned towards him. He let the door shut behind him and one step was enough to bring him just inches away from her.

Well it's not exactly that flat you had in Chelsea," MJ quipped.

"But it'll do in a pinch?" he asked, his arms winding around her waist and leaning in, he kissed that smile away like he'd done hundreds of time before.


	13. Chapter 12

The Rock was silent except for the bouncy pop music echoing through its sound system and the sounds of a pair of feet tumbling over the floor. All the girls were lined up along the edge of the main floor as Kaylie finished the last dance pass of her routine and moved to the corner for her final tumbling run. Steadying herself with a deep breath, she launched into a roundoff, back handspring, double pike, landing just slightly over rotated and compensating with a small hop backward and then dancing out of it with her last bit of choreography down to the floor, lying on her stomach and blowing a kiss to the crowd. The music ended and Kaylie stood tall, saluting imaginary judges.

The girls applauded from the sidelines and Payson smiled at her teammate as she came off the floor directly towards where she was standing beside Sasha.

Sasha seemed pleased. "Nice routine, Kaylie. That double arabian is really beginning to look solid," their coach said. "Watch your set into the double pike, but if you're going to take a step, make it a one-tenth step."

Kaylie nodded, sucking in deep breaths, winded after 90 seconds of constant motion and some of the hardest gymnastics tricks in the world.

Sasha signaled to Tara to change the music and Payson offered Kaylie a fist for her to bump. "Nice job."

"Thanks Pay," Kaylie said with a smile. "Now rock it."

The girls who would be attending Nationals in a little less than two weeks were doing floor pressure sets, where the whole gym would stop and watch their routine, recreating, as much as possible, the tension of competing in front of a large crowd.

Everyone was still applauding when Sasha turned to Payson, his hand landing lighting on her shoulder. "Now, just your first two passes. The rest should be dance through."

She nodded quickly and looked up at him as he squeezed her shoulder, the tough callouses on the tips of his fingers catching just a bit on the skin of her neck. A wave of confidence surged through her at the touch before she moved onto the floor, near the center. Lowering herself to her starting position near the carpet, a hush came over the girls as the music flared to life, softly at first, but building in momentum as Payson rose and immediately began dancing, using every sinew in her body to let the story flow into her motions, a gymnast not just out to win, but to show the world that she was the greatest to ever compete. That was the goal.

She moved into the corner for her first tumbling pass, just as the crescendo began to truly build, she took a step forward into a round off backhandspring one and a half twist, stepping out into another round off back handspring, building far more power than just seconds before and launching into a triple twist. She let herself bounce out of it just slightly, still not really used to working her skills on a competition floor, before moving into more choreography, this time with skills interwoven within the dance. She and Miss Viola had worked hard to find highly rated skills within the gymnastics code of points that she could compete flawlessly and integrate seamlessly into her routine's composition. Just as the melody sang out, she extended her leg into back attitude and spun in two full rotations, before stepping out and quickly extending her other leg up, her knee cap pressing into her nose as she rotated around again fully before dropping her leg and letting her arms fly up over her head, just on the cue of the music building again.

Dancing into another corner, she lifted her chin and ran forward, another round off backhandspring led her into a two and a half twist into a punch layout, sticking it cold without thinking about it and from then she just danced, feeling herself begin to get winded about halfway through the routine. Her third and fourth tumbling passes were simple layouts in place of the double layout and piked double arabian she'd been training on the tramps and into the pits, but the choreography still flowed even as her breath came short and then she leapt one last time into the air, landing on her feet, an arm extended out, in front of her with a flourish, ending the routine.

The girls around the mat applauded as the music went silent, but the only thing Payson heard was buzzing in her ears and the deep rasps of her own breathing. Then she saluted, as she'd be expected to once there were real judges in front of her, even though she wouldn't be competing floor in Boston.

Payson took deep breaths trying get it under control as she left the floor towards Sasha smiling widely. "I'd have prefered you to at least bounce out of the layout just to save the hard landing, but otherwise, that was beautiful," he said.

She put her hands on her hips and moved off to the side as he stepped over to Kelly who was set to go last.

"That routine was lovely," MJ's voice said from just over her shoulder. Payson turned to her and smiled a thanks, noting the cameraman who was setting up to get Kelly's routine on film. "Sasha said you won't be competing floor at Nationals?"

"It won't be ready, but it should be good to go well before Worlds Selection Camp and really that's all that matters," Payson said. It was the answer she'd rehearsed over and over again because she was sure it would come up at least a million times once they were in Boston. It had the added bonus of being true.

"It's a shame though. A routine like. I bet Rolex wouldn't mind setting one of its commercials to it."

Payson quirked a skeptical brow at her. "Rolex?"

MJ shrugged. "Rolex, Longines, Mercedes, Cartier, high end retailers that would love for a beautiful blonde whose about to win Olympic gold to sell their products to the crème of society."

Pressing her lips together into a thin line, Payson tried to keep her pose casual as she turned to the high powered agent. "And you know this because?"

The smile that spread across MJ's face let Payson know immediately that she'd been had, despite her efforts to seem disinterested. "I may have already made some calls, especially after Sasha explained what you two have been up to since your surgery."

"My parents don't want me to give up my NCAA eligibility. We've talked about it since I was little. A gymnastics scholarship is a big deal."

MJ pursed her lips and nodded in acquiescence. "Of course it is, but a college scholarship is simply a means to obtain your education and if the numbers I've been getting in response to my feelers pan out, you'd be able pay for university for yourself, your sister and maybe several of the other girls in this gym."

At that Payson's brow furrowed. Most of the time gymnasts didn't even consider going pro until after they'd won a major international competition, like Worlds or at least they waited until the Olympic year when they'd be reasonably sure that they were going to make the team and bring home a medal. The truth of the matter was that people just weren't interested in gymnasts unless it was time to light the torch and represent at the Games.

"Why? It's a little early to be thinking about that, isn't it?"

"I've been representing gymnasts for a long time, Payson. Signing one this far out from the games is a risk," she acknowledged, "but I've been watching you train these last few days and I have never seen Sasha as excited about an athlete as he is about you. And that is saying something, love. You're going all the way." The music to Kelly's routine started up. "Think it over, Payson," MJ said. "I think we'd make a great team you and I."

Payson didn't respond, she simply let her attention drift to Kelly's routine, but despite herself, the thought continued to swim around her mind, ingraining itself right beside the emotions that flowed through her floor routine. She was training to be the best gymnast of all time, the best the world had ever seen and after that she'd just head off to college and compete watered down routines and go to class, just like everybody else? It was an idea that had never bothered her before, but suddenly, it didn't seem like enough.

Sasha released the elite girls after their floor exhibition and watched as the rest of the gym scattered to the other apparatus, taking advantage of training on a Sunday when Payson, Kaylie and Kelly wouldn't be in the gym for the rest of the day. Normally, he'd spend the day with the level tens, but instead he had to get dressed in the outfit MJ had hung in his trailer earlier that day and spend the rest of the morning getting his picture taken.

He ran his fingers through his hair, as he glanced into the mirror. As instructed he hadn't shaved in two days, his laziness with a razor was apparently his signature look, according to MJ and helped fans separate him from his days competing when he'd always gone clean shaven. A light blue dress shirt and the dark gray trousers that had been pressed within an inch of their life completed the ensemble. Apparently the theme of the photoshoot was to contrast the beauty of Boulder's natural landscape with the formality of their dress, at least that's what MJ had said that morning while she'd been digging through his clothes to find an acceptable option.

Stepping out into the Rock's car park, he fiddled with the cuffs of his dress shirt, disliking the way they rubbed at his wrists. Risking MJ's ire, he unbuttoned them and rolled the sleeves up to his elbows. Much better.

Laugher kicked up from the front entrance of the gym as the girls emerged together, all three dressed to the nines in the dresses MJ had chosen for them in the color they thought best represented them. A shocker to no one, Kaylie had chosen a bright pink number; Kelly had gone with her signature royal blue, but a smile crept over his face as he saw the color of Payson's dress: a shimmering champagne gold. If he had any concerns about whether their combined efforts were working, that dress would have dispelled them entirely. She knew how good she was and she knew how beautiful she was and she had no problem declaring those things to the world.

"Ladies," he said, joining them on the sidewalk as a large van with tinted windows pulled up. "You all look lovely."

"You clean up pretty well yourself," Payson said. "MJ's going to hate your sleeves."

"Well let's see if we can't make that vein on the side of her forehead pulse," he whispered and quickly undid the top two buttons of his dress shirt.

Kaylie giggled, Kelly snorted and Payson just pressed her mouth together, letting her eyes dance at him.

MJ stepped out of the van and he could see Marty, along with Lauren Tanner and Emily Kmetko seated inside. "Good, you're all ready." If she noted his markedly more casual look than expected, she didn't say anything. "Let's go."

He'd only lived in Boulder for a few months and most of his time was spent at the gym, so he hadn't had much time to explore the parks and glorious nature that the city was famous for. Payson had mentioned that she ran through Chautauqua Park almost every morning and he could see why. It had the same kind of calming effect that the woods around his home in Cambria did, though its wide grasslands, small clusters of trees and the mountains that rose in the distance were beautiful in an entirely different way.

"Okay, we want the mountain in the background, obviously," MJ was instructing the videographer and photographer whose names he hadn't caught on the ride over.

"Are we doing this all together?" Lauren Tanner asked, fiddling with the hem of her very short white dress, Emily Kmetko standing beside her in purple.

"Together," MJ called back. "You'll be representing your country on the National team, not your clubs."

"So back in Sydney, did you ever see this as our future," Mary asked, sidling up beside him, his own more formal look still intact, cuffs buttoned at his wrists, collar starched and a tie knotted at his throat.

"I would have laughed in your bloody face if you'd suggested it," Sasha said. "Not a bad life though."

"Not bad at all," Marty agreed. "Listen Sasha, once a week I go to a gym, Stan's. They have a bunch of heavy bags, two rings and a bunch of guys willing to spar. I know you don't…"

"That sounds…" Nice? He couldn't say that. "When?"

"Usually Sunday afternoons, though obviously not today."

"Obviously. Alright, Walsh. Next week, I'll see you there."

Marty smiled. "Good."

The shoot itself was relatively painless as far as Sasha was concerned. He and Marty were only required for a few shots with their girls as a group and individually. Then the girls were photographed as a group and finally, individual shots.

"I thought about what you said."

Payson's voice drew his attention away from the shoot where Kelly was directing the photographer more than the reverse. He glanced to his right where Payson stood with MJ under a white tent, near a table of equipment and a screen where all the pictures popping up as they were taken.

"Have you?" MJ asked. Neither woman was paying him any attention, so he wandered over quietly.

"I have to discuss it with my parents and they will probably throw a fit at the idea, but what you said makes sense."

"And what did you say, Miss Martin?" the ice in his tone surprising even him as he closed the distance quickly between them.

Payson's brow furrowed, in confusion, but MJ raised her hands. "I merely suggested to Payson…"

"Using your position as an NGO representative to gain an usually high level of access to an amateur athlete…" he cut in.

"That she would do well to consider all her options," MJ finished.

"After I specifically warned you…"

"Oh please, Sasha, you knew I was lying."

Running a hand through his hair. "No, I didn't. Apparently that's one of my many faults, the total inability to know whether or not Matilda Jean Martin is lying through her teeth."

"Sasha…" MJ started.

"Save it, MJ and stay the hell away from Payson."

"Hey there," Payson said at the mention of her name. "I'm still here and I'd appreciate it if you didn't talk about me like I wasn't."

Sasha turned towards her. "You shouldn't have had to deal with this so close to Nationals, Payson. I'm sorry."

"What are you apologizing for?" she asked, shaking her head, her blonde hair that had been styled in some sort of half-up, half-down look beginning to fall around her face. "MJ just asked a question. I'm perfectly capable of answering it."

"That's not what I…" he began, trying to explain that he'd been trying to protect her.

She cut him off. "That's sure what it sounded like."

Sasha threw his hands up in defeat, at least on that point. "Regardless, I specifically requested she not approach you while you were training and it's clear that she totally disregarded it, even after she agreed," he said, then turned to MJ, "so when the NGO needs to send someone to take pretty pictures again, tell them they should send someone else."

MJ rolled her eyes. "Payson, discuss whatever you need to with your parents. You have my number. You can reach me there at any time. There's no rush, but obviously I'd like to get started sooner rather than later."

Payson nodded and MJ strode away, leaving them alone under the tent.

"I thought we talked about you making decisions without me around?" she asked quietly.

"Payson," he said, folding himself down into an empty chair. She followed suit when he gestured to the chair beside his. "This wasn't about you, although I admit I was pretty sure you were who she'd set her sights on, it was about the integrity of the Rock. There's something sacred about the place you train and you shouldn't have to deal with distractions like sports agents and money while you're there."

"So you're not against the idea of me going pro?"

He sighed heavily, knowing what he was about to say was going to make at least one of the Keeler women, if not both, angry at him. "I honestly don't care either way."

"You don't care?" Her nose wrinkled in confusion.

He reached out and touched her knee lightly. "It doesn't matter to me. I'm your coach. Whether you're an amateur or a pro, my job stays the same, to make you into the greatest gymnast you can be."

"The greatest gymnast ever," she corrected with a smile.

He leaned down making sure to meet her eyes beyond the soft strands of blonde hair framing her face, squeezing her knee lightly to make sure she understood how much he meant what he was about to say. "For you, Payson Keeler, that's one in the same." Her smile widened and a pretty blush spread across the apples of her cheeks. "Interesting color choice with the dress, by the way." He sat back and smiled.

"It's not too on the nose?" she said, catching a bit of the silky material between her fingertips.

He laughed and shrugged. "Who cares?"

She snorted. "Lauren Tanner seemed to care quite a bit."

"She giving you problems?" Scuttlebutt around the Rock was that Lauren Tanner was quite the nasty bitch, though from what he'd heard, she'd never really gone after Payson.

"No more than usual. Lauren's...difficult, but we'd always been friends before she moved to Denver."

"Seems like maybe you're about to be again," he nodded towards where Kaylie and Lauren were standing close together, small hesitant smiles burgeoning on their faces. Then one of them whispered something and suddenly they were hugging fiercely.

Payson sighed and stood, but not before taking off the high heeled sandals she'd worn for the pictures. "They'd never been able to stay mad at each other for long. I better go over there and make sure it doesn't disintegrate before we wrap today."

She'd only gone a few steps when she stopped, suddenly face to face with Marty.

"Payson," Marty said, but Payson just nodded quickly and moved around her former coach. Sasha couldn't see her face, but he could imagine it, a stone of emotion, eyes flaring with the anger she'd directed at him more than once since they'd begun working together. They both watched her go in silence.

"Not sure she's ever going to forgive me." Marty looked so heartbroken at the idea that for a moment Sasha wanted to reassure him that Payson was the forgiving sort and would probably forgive him for leaving her, after at time. Then again, he couldn't ever imagine leaving a gymnast like her, especially not now after he'd worked with her. How could anyone ever leave Payson Keeler, no matter the consequences.

"Not sure she ever should," Sasha shot back.

Marty had the grace to let it go. "I could hear you and MJ screaming at each other from the other side of the shoot. Brought back some old memories. She made her move, I take it? "

Sasha snorted. "In more ways than one." Marty was the closest thing he had to a friend and he suddenly felt the need for someone else, anyone else to understand what had happened to him this last week.

Marty groaned, catching his meaning quickly. "You didn't."

"I did," Sasha said, rolling his eyes at himself. "I really, really did."

"When we're done here, you wanna go grab a beer?"

Relief swept through him. "Bloody hell, yes."


	14. Chapter 13

There was only half a day's training scheduled for the Monday before they left for Nationals. The next day they'd all be on a plane to Boston and it was an annual tradition for the Cruz family to hold a send-off dinner for the entire gym before they left. Payson promised Kaylie that she'd be there early to help set up so that gave her just enough time to get cleaned up and talk to her parents before she had to leave.

Freshly showered and letting her hair air-dry, she moved into the living room where her parents were sitting on the couch unwinding from the work day before the party. They stopped talking abruptly as she cleared her throat and while it was a little odd, she pushed through it.

"There's something I want to talk to you guys about," she said, standing before them, wishing she'd thought to dress up for the party instead of giving her speech in ratty jeans and a racerback tank top. Except Kelly was lending her a dress and was bringing it to the Cruz's later.

Her dad sat forward on the couch and tilted his head at her. "Sounds serious."

Payson nodded, a few strands of wet hair falling into her face. She brushed them back. "It is."

"Okay, let's hear it," her mom said and then waited, expectantly.

"I spoke with MJ Martin this week."

"Payson," her mom started, her tone rising on the second half of her name.

"Please, just hear me out?" she said, taking a deep breath. "I spoke to her this week and she wants to sign me."

"We talked about this, Pay," her dad cut in this time.

"No," she responded. "You guys talked about it and since it was so far off, I just didn't really have an opinion one way or another."

"And you have an opinion now?" her mom asked.

"I want to go pro."

"Why?"

"Because I think it's the best choice for me and for us as a family. MJ gave me a prospectus to look over. She said I should talk about it with you guys and that obviously she'd be happy to meet with you to go over the details, but what she's proposing would be...it's a lot of money."

"What about a scholarship? You do know you'd be…"

She cut off her dad. "Giving up my NCAA eligibility. I know." This was the tough part, the part that maybe they wouldn't want to hear. "I have no interest in college gymnastics. Big hair, Yurchenko fulls and half bar routines I could do when I was twelve. That's not me, guys, it never has been. I want to go the Olympics and with how good I feel now, I think maybe I want to go twice, but I know how early it is to be making this decision. I talked to Sasha about it…"

"And what did he have to say?" her mom asked, eyebrows raised.

"He said he doesn't care one way or another," Payson told her, throwing him right under the bus. He wouldn't mind. Probably.

Her mom narrowed her eyes. Sasha was probably in for a tongue lashing at the party later. "That doesn't sound like him. I bet he wasn't thrilled when you told him MJ approached you."

Payson shrugged. "She's banned from the Rock, which actually works because the gym should be sacred. Still, she's not wrong. If I can cash in now, start to pay you guys back for all the sacrifices we had to make as a family so I could train here…"

"Payson, that's not your responsibility," her dad spoke up again

"No, I mean," she was getting off track. "I mean I know you're worried about college, so I thought about it. What if I took the first hundred thousand dollars I earn and put it in a trust? MJ has a some companies that want to sign me before Worlds and they're willing to pay a premium for me getting on board this far out from the Olympics. Those deals would easily add up to that amount, maybe even more. If I promised that first hundred thousand would go away and I wouldn't touch it, that it would be for college, just in case, would you let me do this?"

Silence reigned. She knew she had them. There was too much sense in what she was saying and if they said no now, they'd only be doing it because they hadn't really listened to what she was saying.

"I think your mother and I need to discuss this."

She shook her head and steeled herself for an eruption for what she was about to say. "No."

"No?" her mom repeated, incredulously.

"No, don't discuss this. Talk to me. This is about me about mycareer. Talk to me."

"She's right, Kim," her dad said, then he turned back to her. "You've thought about this? You know going pro is a big commitment, Pay. Your time isn't your own anymore. You'll have obligations beyond just school and training."

Payson nodded. "I'm going to talk to MJ about that. I've been watching what Kelly goes through and I don't want that. No time commitments until after Worlds when we get a little time off."

"And MJ was okay with that?"

"If I hired her, she'd have to be. She would work for me, for us, not the other way around. She is the best though. She reps Austin Tucker and she was Sasha's agent like forever ago. She knows what it takes to get to the Olympics and she won't get in the way of that. After all, the better I do at the Games, the more money I make and the more money she makes."

Her mom shook her head. "You make it all sound so reasonable."

Payson laughed nervously. That had been the plan after all and she couldn't quite believed she'd pulled it off or at least that's what it sounded like. "So you guys are okay with this?"

"We didn't say that," her dad said. "Do you have the prospectus? I'll look over it. We'll have a lawyer look over it too."

"Mark," her mom said in that same incredulous tone she'd used earlier.

"It sounds like she's thought it through."

"I have," Payson assured them. "Sasha's plan for me. He doesn't just think I can win it all. He thinks I can be the best gymnast ever and as amazing and scary as that is, this might be part of that too. I think it would better to do this now, to ease my way into it instead of it all happening suddenly right before the Olympics or right after it."

"Again, reasonable," her mom said, shrugging helplessly. "Get us that prospectus. We'll look through it and then we'll meet with MJ and then we'll decide."

Payson nodded. That was as good as it was going to get. She'd expected them to shut her down completely and dismiss it out of hand. "I have to be at Kaylie's early to help set up. Can I take dad's car?"

Her dad nodded and she fled the room, but couldn't keep the smile off her face as she did.

"They're going to look over the prospectus before they get here tonight," Payson said, examining the dress Kelly Parker had shoved at her when they'd arrived at Kaylie's house to get ready together. It was a tradition the Rock girls had begun two years ago when Kaylie and Lauren had joined her at the Junior Elite Nationals. It wasn't her usual style, but it also wasn't a usual night. She needed her parents to see her as an adult, not a little kid and this dress would definitely help.

"That's a big deal, Pay," Kaylie said from where she was digging through her closet, the sheer amount of dresses totally overwhelming her.

Kelly wrinkled her nose from her seat on Kaylie's bed in her little black dress. "Are you sure that's what you want? I've been pro since I was eight years old and it's not all it's cracked up to be."

"Is that even legal?" Payson asked. Could an eight year old give up their own eligibility? Who was good enough at eight at anything to be a pro athlete?

Flinching, Kelly ignored the question. "If it's what you want, MJ's a good choice. She's a shark, but like, she's your shark, you know?"

"Exactly," Payson said. "It's what I want. I can't imagine doing college gymnastics and with how good I'm feeling, if things go well, I think I may even have another quadrennium in me."

"Enough gymnastics talk. What do you guys think of this?" Kaylie said, turning from the closet and holding up a blue off the shoulder dress.

"Payson's wearing blue," Kelly said, nodding to the dress. It's far more simple than Kelly's usual ensembles, navy blue with a black design, almost leaf like, running through it and lace work at the hem. The halter neckline is cut deep, not so deep as to be inappropriate, but enough to highlight that she's old enough to make the dress work. Tying behind her neck, there is no back except at the line of the skirt at the small of her back, just above the small incision scar from her surgery.

She'd just gotten the dress on and was fiddling with the neck when Kaylie's door burst open.

"Oh my God, you guys started without us?"

Lauren burst in through the doorway, leaving Emily standing awkwardly just outside it, a nervous smile on her face.

"You invited them?" Kelly bit out. "Why?" Emily seemed to shrink back further, but Payson waved her in.

Kaylie bit her lip and shrugged. "Lauren and I were talking at the photoshoot and we're all going to be teammates anyway after Nationals so I just thought we should get like a head start on it."

Payson nearly snorted. No way Kaylie had come up with that one on her own. That reasoning had Lauren Tanner's scheming written all over it, even if Kaylie thought it had been her idea. The last time they'd talked about Lauren, Kaylie was still pissed as all hell at the other girl. No way she'd done a 180 on it without at least mentioning it during training.

The other girls were both already dressed for the party, Lauren in a bright pink top and pencil skirt, Emily in a soft gray cotton top and dress pants. Payson smoothed down the dress again, suddenly feeling way too formal, but she shook herself. This was important. She hadn't felt self conscious in weeks and she wasn't about to start now.

"You didn't invite Marty too, did you?" Payson asked. Lauren and Emily were one thing and despite her motives being suspect, they would be teammates sooner rather than later. Being at each other's throats during Training Camps wouldn't be fun when they were all trying to make the World team after Nationals.

"No," Kaylie said, holding out a white dress Payson had never seen her wear before. "I...look if I tell you guys something will you promise not to say anything?"

Everyone nodded and Kaylie tossed the dress to the chair in her corner. "I know why Marty left the Rock. Why he really left. He was having an affair with my mom."

Sasha swirled the contents of his glass around, the ice tinkling pleasantly against the sides of the thick crystal tumbler. The din of voices echoed in the Cruz's large home, carrying from one side of the party to the other. He stood just to the side of Mark and Kim Keeler, allowing them to be his buffer for the evening, though even they hadn't managed to avoid Lauren Tanner's father and his wide-eyed girlfriend entirely.

"We're actually looking for someone to head up facilities at the firm. Our last guy went over budget five years in a row and we had to let him go."

"Your firm owns the building you operate out of?" Mark asked, after he and Kim steered the conversation away from gymnastics almost immediately.

"No we lease," Steve said, "but we're the largest tenant and the owner asked us to take the lead in the search."

"You know I ran facilities for U of M's law school back in Minneapolis," Mark said and Steve Tanner's eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"You interested?"

Kim tensed up beside her husband as he said, "I might just be."

Sasha took a final sip from his drink cleared his throat softly, nodding to the foursome, "Excuse me."

Turning and heading for the bar, he nearly ran headlong into Payson and Kelly as they rounded the corner. "Ladies."

"Belov," Kelly said, her eyes laughing.

"Hey, Sasha," Payson said, bumping her hip against Kelly's.

"Where are the other girls?"

Kelly rolled her eyes. "We needed a break. Tanner and Cruz are being all Family Reunion and pretty sure Kmetko thinks Payson and I are gymnastics's version of the Kardashians, so…"

"Kelly, she does not. She's just nervous," Payson admonished and then nodded to this glass. "Everyone already driving you to drink?"

"Mostly my own fault. Your mum cornered me when she arrived. I had to assure her that even if you sign with MJ that that woman will be banned from the Rock."

Payson smiled widely. "And what did you tell her?"

"That Ms. Martin is already enjoying a lifetime ban."

"Does that mean your trailer is off limits too?" Kelly blurted out. Sasha eyed the cup in her hand. Had she gotten into the harder stuff?

"Your trailer?" Payson asked, as Kelly started to giggle, a noise he suspected most people had never thought the World Champion capable of.

"That's none of your business," he managed to say, feeling the heat of Payson's wide eyes on him while he shut Kelly down.

"Then you should be more subtle," Kelly shot back, still laughing as he felt the heat rise over the back of his neck. He hadn't blushed in decades and yet here he was, completely felled by an eighteen year old girl's innuendo and the...was that disappointment in Payson's gaze? He couldn't be sure.

"I didn't realize that you two were…" Payson trailed off. "Do you think I shouldn't sign with her? If it caused a problem with you two, I don't want to get in the middle of...I ruined things, didn't I?"

Sasha shook his head and set down the empty glass. Where had Kelly gone? He caught a flash of her black silk dress disappearing into the crowd. They were alone. Reaching out, he took Payson by the elbow and drew her further into the quiet of the hallway. "It had nothing to do with you."

"Sasha," she began. He heard the regret and uncertainty in her voice and he jumped in quickly.

"No listen. MJ and I were something once, a long time ago and it ended badly and it was, quite frankly, pretty stupid of me to take up with her again and maybe yes, her approaching you while you were training was what woke me up to the fact that she and I just aren't meant to be together, it is in no way your fault."

He could practically see the wheels turning in her head as she processed all he'd just thrown at her. "But if I sign with her then she'll be around a lot. I don't want you to feel uncomfortable."

"I'm a big boy, Payson. I can work with MJ if she represents you and if you do decide to go pro, I can't think of anyone better to look out for your interests." He punctuated his statement by squeezing her elbow gently, letting the warmth in his hand reassure her as it often seemed to when they were working together.

The clash of a glass falling and shattering on the floor broke the moment and Sasha pulled back quickly.

"Whoops, sorry!" The voice of Chloe Kmetko had them both turning to where she was bending over to gather the shards of glass with her bare hands.

"No!"

"Don't!"

He and Payson stepped forward together, but it was too late, she'd already cut a gash across the palm of her hand. "Damn it!" she cursed and stood, clearly a little tipsy and off balance on her wedged heels.

A server rushed over when Sasha signaled him to clean up the mess and he and Payson led her back into the Cruz's kitchen. Payson moved past them to a drawer on the far side of the monstrous, marble and mahogany room. He guided Chloe to the sink, setting the faucet to allow a slow stream of warm water to run over her palm after he'd made sure there was no glass still inside it.

"I'm such a clumsy idiot," Chloe said, leaning her shoulder into his chest as he held her hand under the water. "I'm sure Emily will say I ruined everything, again."

"I don't think she even saw it," Payson said, from Chloe's other side, holding peroxide, gauze and some bandages. "I promise I won't tell her."

"She won't hear a word of it from us," Sasha agreed. "Now let me see."

"Oooh, are we going to play doctor? I could be your nurse " Chloe asked, clearly far more drunk than either of them had suspected and Payson looked up at him in shock. His eyes begged her not to go, but she quickly placed the medical supplies on the counter.

"I think you can handle this," Payson said, backing away slowly and mouthing a sorry before she took off out of the kitchen.

"Traitor," he muttered under his breath and he heard her soft laugh echo back as she made her escape.

"What?" Chloe asked and leaned in closer. "Are you going to handle me, now?

"No, no handling. No playing doctor, but I'll get you all patched up and out of here before your daughter thinks, what was it? That you've ruined everything?"

"And then you and I can share…" she trailed off, though he was pretty sure he heard more humor than actual insinuation in her voice.

"A pot of coffee," he finished for her with a smile.

"You're no fun."

He took the peroxide up and poured some of it onto the gauze then pressed it against her palm. Chloe let out a hiss of pain as it went to work on her cut. "That's what they tell me."

Payson searched the crowd as she moved back into where the party was still in full swing. A small twinge of guilt at leaving Sasha to deal with a drunk Chloe Kmetko on his own, but then again, like he said, he was a big boy, he could figure it out. Besides, she'd already cockblocked him once this week, she wasn't about to do it again.

"There are you!" Lauren said, grabbing her by the hand and dragging her back through the main living room out onto the back patio. The other girls were there and so were Carter Anderson and Nicky Russo.

"Okay, I found Payson," Lauren declared. "And now I officially declare this a boy free zone. Shoo!" she waved off the guys.

"Hey Payson," Nicky said, as he and Carter were herded back through the glass doors by Lauren.

"Hi," she said back, making sure to keep her face neutral. She'd had enough teasing about him to last her a lifetime. Just because a guy liked her, and yeah, she was pretty sure he liked her, didn't mean she had to like him back.

"Oh my God," Lauren said, once the doors were firmly shut. "Did you see the way Nicky looked at you in that dress? I didn't know you guys were thing."

Payson groaned, throwing herself down into one of the chairs around the firepit. "We're not."

After a night of more information than she needed about the adults in her life, this was the last thing she needed. Was this what being an adult was like? Dealing with other people's crap, their affairs and their issues, just wanting a little peace and quiet to yourself and not being able to get it, making huge life-altering decisions and pretending like you knew what you were doing while you really, really don't? If so, then being an adult sucked, but she was pretty sure once you realized that universal truth, there was no going back. It was too late for her.

"I bet he really liked that neckline, Pay," Kaylie said, her eyes twinkling with amusement, but there was also something else there, an anxiety that made no sense until Payson remembered that Lauren still didn't know about Kaylie and Carter.

Sighing heavily, she made the grown-up decision and helped out her friend, even if she didn't quite play along. "He can like it all he wants, I can't even describe how uninterested I am in Nicky Russo. What I am interested in is how we're all going to kick ass in Boston and make the National Team."

Kaylie nodded and smiled widely. "Ellen Beals won't know what hit her."


	15. Chapter 14

The flight from Boulder to Boston was uneventful. Payson sat in the middle seat between Kaylie and Kelly for the four hour non-stop journey, something that just a couple of months ago would have been an impossible task for that bulging disc in her back. Five athletes, their families three assistant coaches, plus Sasha deplaned without incident. Through fate or sheer coincidence, the Denver team's plane landed around the same time as theirs and they all made it down to baggage claim together where a burly man wearing an earpiece was holding a sign that read National Gymnastics Organization

"How many athletes do we have here?" the burly man, who'd introduced himself as Leon just seconds before, asked.

"Eight," Payson said, adding up everyone from the Rock and Denver, including a junior from Denver, Tessa Grande.

"Nine," a voice corrected from behind her and she glanced over her shoulder to see Austin Tucker sauntering toward their group, standing more than a full head above the rest of them, eye level only with her dad and Sasha.

"Oh my God," Kaylie squeaked from beside her through gritted teeth. "That's Austin Tucker."

"Guilty," he said, finally reaching them and Kaylie turned a shade of pink, her eyes growing wide.

"Alright," Leon said, scanning the gathered group. "First bus will be athletes and the coaches. Second bus, families and friends and such. Marcus Collins has taken care of everything and he'll meet us at the hotel."

The groups split off as they left the baggage claim area. Payson handed her bag off to the driver and stepped onto the bus, Kelly hot on her heels, taking a seat beside her.

"I always forget just how hot he is," Kelly muttered, "then I see him in person again."

Payson laughed. "Easy to get over when he's wearing his sunglasses inside like an idiot."

"Right?" Austin said, popping through the doorway, his sunglasses finally at the top of his head. "Who does that?"

Kelly rolled her eyes and Payson laughed harder. She'd been going to Nationals with Austin Tucker for years now. She'd known him since she was a junior and he was a lot less intimidating than he pretended to be.

"Parker, Keeler, how are you lovely ladies doing?"

"We're just fine," Kelly said, with a smirk, one perfectly groomed eyebrow rising, giving him an assessing look.

"I agree," he shot back, moving past their seats towards the back of the bus.

Kelly let out a shaky breath.

"Are you two a thing?" Payson asked. That was one rumor she hadn't heard before and she was pretty sure Kelly had a thing for Kaylie's older brother Leo.

"He doesn't date gymnasts," Kelly said with a shrug, "and neither do I, but he's fun to flirt with."

Everyone else piled onto the bus, Kaylie and Lauren attached at the hip as if Lauren's hissy fit hadn't nearly destroyed their gym and Emily looking so much like a lost puppy that Payson felt bad for forgetting about the girl. Nicky and Carter both moved towards the back to sit with Austin and then the coaches sat at the front.

"It's a short drive to the hotel ladies and gentlemen," Leon said as the bus pulled away from the curb. "There are fans already at the hotel, so just a few procedures go over. First, do I have an Austin Tucker, Nicholas Russo, Kelly Parker and Payson Keeler, also coaches, Sasha Belov and Marty Walsh?"

They all raised their hands. Leon nodded. "You'll all exit the bus first. The security team at the hotel is waiting and ready to escort you through the crowds. We ask that you don't stop to sign autographs. The crowd is mostly little girls and their mothers, but that kind of crowd can get dangerous quickly, especially for the younger ones."

Payson actually heard Lauren's sigh from the row behind her, part indignation, part envy. Last year the crowds hadn't been so bad, but then again, last year Nationals had been held outside of Chicago, way into the suburbs. The year after the Olympics, Nationals weren't that big a deal. They were in Boston now though, in the city proper, and the crowds would be much bigger especially a year closer to London.

Ten minutes later, Leon's words proved prophetic. The crowd outside their hotel was ten to fifteen people deep and security had formed a path from where the bus would pull up to the main entrance. "Don't worry about your bags, just follow me through. We'll get the others off and then the luggage to your rooms."

Sasha and Marty helped Leon and his security team lead the way, with Austin and Nicky taking up the rear. It had been a year since Payson heard shrieking like the sound echoing out of the throats of all the little girls lining the sides of the barricades. It was surreal. So much of her time was spent isolated from all this, in the gym and yet, in the world of gymnastics fans, she was an A-List celebrity, on par with Olympic Gold Medalists. Payson took a deep breath as they sprinted the last few feet into the hotel's lobby. She hadn't earned this kind of adoration yet, not really. Her only claim to fame was a junior national championship and a second place finish last year. It wasn't like she wanted the attention. She'd very happily go through the rest of her life without another autograph request, but if she was going to get it, it did feel like she needed to earn it. This weekend would be another step in that direction.

Payson only had time to toss herself onto one of the two queen sized beds in the hotel room when a knock sounded on her door. Kelly Parker's anxious face was on the other side when she looked through the peephole.

Opening the door, Kelly walked right in, not waiting for an invite. "Okay, so my mom booked me a suite and she doesn't like staying at the official hotel because she's trying to get another hotel brand to sign me, so I have a ton of room if you want to share?"

Payson raised her eyebrows. The toughest part of Nationals was always being packed into a hotel room with her parents and Becca. "Sure."

"Great. Let's go."

"I have to wait for my parents and for my bags."

"Oh, I told the security guy to bring your bags to my room. Pretty sure he thinks we're hooking up, got all slack-jawed and everything."

Payson rolled her eyes, pulling out her phone to text her mom that she'd be in Kelly's room when another knock at the door sounded.

"Good, you're already here," MJ said in her clipped accent when Kelly opened the door

"I was just leaving," Payson said, finishing off the text.

"This won't take long. I have your parents' signatures on this contract. I just need yours and then we're good to go," MJ said pulling the papers out of her handbag and holding them forward with a pen.

"Okay then," Payson said, taking the papers and leaning them up against the wall to sign her name to the last line next to her parents'. "Is that it?"

"That's it," MJ said with a smile. "I have a few meetings set up for today, but I'll only need you for one."

"And that one is?" Payson asked.

MJ smirked and nodded at Kelly. "Sorry, privileged information, embargoed until there's a deal."

Kelly laughed. "I'm not my mom."

With a shrug, MJ tucked the papers away. "I thought I heard you were all wanted for a meeting with the National Committee and a light workout at two?"

Payson glanced at her phone. They only had twenty minutes to get ready.

"Come on, Keeler," Kelly said, leading her out of the room. "Time to go pay our dues to the powers that be."

The powers that be were the National Committee and its new National Team Coordinator Ellen Beals. Payson remembered Beals from her time working with the Junior National Team and since Martha Karolyi retired after Beijing she'd been promoted to the top spot. They were at the arena, seated on the floor exercise, most of the equipment set up for a week's worth of gymnastics. They'd get a chance to work through their routines over the next few days before the actual competition began, including a short workout in a few minutes.

"Ladies," she said, dressed in a Team USA tracksuit and balancing a clipboard against her hip. "I'm so pleased to welcome you to Nationals. This year marks the halfway point to the London Olympics and I'm sure that there at least one or two Olympians seated before me. Before we run through a light workout today, I just wanted to wish you all luck this week and let you know that everything you do will be part of our evaluation for World Team selection. This week isn't just about creating a new National Team. This will be our only chance to see you perform on a podium in front of a large crowd between now and Rotterdam and as such what you put forth this week will be the most significant determining factor for Worlds."

Payson felt the panic rising in her throat. Did that mean what she thought? Beals dismissed the other girls and then, "Payson, could I speak to you for a moment?"

"Yes Miss Beals?" she said, jogging over from her spot on the floor.

"Coach Belov has only submitted you for two events this week, bars and beam, is that correct?"

"Yes, ma'am. I'm not quite back up to standard on floor and vault yet and since there are nearly three months until Worlds, we thought it would be better to let my back heal fully and not rush."

Beals hummed in response. "I'm sorry to hear that. Well, I look forward to seeing whatever it is you have prepared."

"Bars and beam," Payson said, her forehead wrinkling in confusion, her panic from earlier bubbling to the surface again. "Miss Beals, I have been training vault and floor back in Boulder and I will be training them here, just not competing."

Beals's attention was drawn away over her shoulder. "Yes, again, like I said Payson, I'm sorry to hear that."

"Payson," Sasha's voice echoed from the other side of the floor as Beals walked away from her towards Marcus Collins, another member of the NGO National Committee.

"Everything okay?" Sasha asked once she joined Kelly and Kaylie near the vault run where they were about to warm up.

"Can we talk after training?" she asked, pulling off her warm-ups and tossing them to the floor as she started to stretch out.

He nodded. "Sure."

"I have a meeting with MJ after this, so, just before dinner?"

Sasha's eyes began to narrow with concern. "Text me whenever you're ready."

Payson nodded and took a deep breath, trying to clear her mind. She needed to focus on training; she could worry about everything else later.

Sasha pushed whatever was bothering Payson out of his mind as she joined the other girls in warming up vault. Glancing around the arena he saw the National Committee spreading out around each event, Ellen Beals standing at the center, like the Queen Bee watching her workers. Just as the girls jogged down to the end of the vault run, joining the Denver Elite team they'd be rotating with during the competition, a man with dark hair and a pristine suit moved in his direction.

"Coach Belov," he said, holding a hand out to shake. "Marcus Collins, assistant Vice President of the NGO and…"

"Member of the World Selection Committee," Sasha finished for him, shaking his hand firmly. "I know who you are Mr. Collins."

"Marcus, please. I don't mind being informal, especially since it looks like we'll be seeing a lot of each other over the next three years."

Sasha nodded, hopping up onto the podium to help Marty move the larger mats on the landing area so the girls could get in their timers.

Marcus stayed on the floor, looking up at him. "Marty, do you mind if I still Sasha away for a moment?"

Shrugging, Marty shifted the mats into place and Sasha - noticing that Marcus had used his first name without waiting for the go-ahead - nodded to Jake and Tara both of whom came to training to help out while he was talking with Collins.

"What can I do for you?" Sasha said, jumping down from the podium again and moving off to the side.

"I wanted to discuss uneven bars with you?"

"Uneven bars?" Sasha furrowed his brow, whatever he'd expected from Marcus, it hadn't been that.

"Generally, the coaches who have athletes on the National Team are asked to share their expertise during National Team Training Camps, but some coaches are given a specific event to work on with the girls during those trainings. Bars has been the US's weakness since the new scoring system was put into place and that's not going to cut it in London against Russia and China. Having a coach who won Olympic gold on high bar and parallel bars working with our girls on their bar routines should help, wouldn't you say?"

"Are you asking me to be the National bars coach?"

"I am."

Sasha had never worked in the US's semi-centralized system before, but the results in the last few years were hard to argue with and since it would likely be to his athletes' benefit for him to be on decent terms with the NGO, it was a no-brainer. "You could have just come out and asked, you know?"

Marcus smiled, the first genuine expression Sasha could recall seeing from the man. "Good then…" he trailed off, his eyes catching something over Sasha's shoulder. "Wow."

Turning, Sasha saw Payson had finished a vault, hands raised over her head, facing away from the vaulting table.

"Nice job, Payson," Ellen Beals called from her position near the other end of the vaulting run.

Sasha's eyes flickered over the mostly empty arena, but quickly took in that everyone had seen that vault, her handspring double twist, the one that she'd just begun to land on a competition surface.

"That's good, Payson," he said, "stretch out thoroughly. Don't want your back to stiffen up."

She nodded and brushed a few flyaways out of her face before jogging down the podium steps on the opposite side and digging into her bag for her grips.

"I thought she wasn't ready on vault yet?" Marcus said, real confusion on his face.

"She's not," Sasha said, wondering if the man before him understood the difference between being able to perform a skill and being able to do it consistently and under pressure. It wasn't a bad time to find out. "She's only just started landing it on competition surfaces. It'll be a while until she's totally consistent on it and that's a strict philosophy in my gym, nothing thrown in competition that you can't land blindfolded with a velociraptor chasing you."

Marcus snorted, his cool façade finally fading entirely. "That's an excellent philosophy."

"I like to think so."

"So bars and beam for Payson here. How are Kelly and Kaylie looking?"

"Kelly's looking strong. Her double on vault is getting there. Kaylie's upgraded her bars dismount from last year."

"A double layout? I saw some footage from your competition at the Rock. The girls look strong."

"Okay, I think I've taken up enough of your time. Good luck this week, Sasha. We're excited to have you on board."

"Just be careful with Marcus," Marty said, after taking a long pull from his beer and setting it down on the hotel bar. "I've worked with the guy since Payson started at the Rock and he's slippery. The entire NGO is still reeling from only bringing home silver in Beijing, even with Shawn and Nastia leading the way and that's not going to be good enough in London."

"We're still more than two years out," Sasha said, signalling to the barkeep that he'd like another Guinness.

"Doesn't matter, man. It's all about London and Beals? She makes Martha Karolyi look like a warm, cuddly kitten."

"A shame she retired. Martha loves me," Sasha quipped. The Karolyis were old family friends and had always had a couch for him to sleep on when he needed it back in the day.

"I'm just saying. That Beals women expects the girls to peak all year long and she thinks the field is deep enough to demand that. I'm worried about Emily. She's got a long way to go in two years and I don't want to push her too hard, too fast, but I don't want her written off either."

"She's got the raw talent and two years is a long way away. A lot can happen between now and then."

"Nah, man, you don't get it. I had to pull Payson out of World's selection after Nationals last year and Beals tried to act like not going to 2009 Worlds was going to destroy her hopes for 2012. Ridiculous."

Sasha shrugged. "There's a lot of pressure on them to win. It was the same in Romania."

"True enough," Marty said, looking over his shoulder at a table in the corner of the bar-slash-restaurant in the hotel's lobby. "So Payson signed with MJ? Who are they meeting with?"

"Nike, I think."

"That's a pretty big fish."

"So is Payson," Sasha said, watching MJ, Payson and the Nike reps stand and exchange handshakes before the reps walked out of the restaurant smiles on their faces. MJ spoke to Payson briefly and then turned from the table as well. Then, just after Payson tapped something into her phone, Sasha felt his phone vibrate in his jacket pocket. "That's my cue."

Lifting his beer from the bar, he stood and let MJ pass him by, nodding politely, but nothing more. He was willing to keep things professional for Payson's sake, but he wasn't capable of anything beyond that.

"Guess that's over?" Marty called to his retreating back and his raised his glass over his head in a toast back towards his old friend, acknowledging the shot as he made his way to the table where Payson still sat, blonde hair in one shiny wave over her shoulder as she flicked over her phone screen.

"Good meeting?" he asked, sliding into the chair one of the reps had vacated.

She shrugged. "I think so. MJ did most of the talking. She says I'm not really allowed to talk until I've had some media training which sounds almost as fun as ballet class."

He barked out a laugh. "It's not a bad idea. I've seen you give interviews."

"Hey!" she protested, tossing her balled up napkin at him. "I'm not that bad."

Giving her a look that disagreed, but knowing they had to get down to business, he pressed on, folding the napkin neatly on the table beside his beer. "So what was it you wanted to talk about?"

"Beals, before training today she was talking about how the routines that we perform her are what she's going to use for World team selection and then after, she made it sound like...I don't know, like if I don't compete all around, then I won't be allowed to at Worlds? It was weird. Who does routine selection months before a competition?"

Sasha shook his head. No one. He'd been in Beals's shoes in Romania. The idea was to make the decisions regarding a team as close as possible to the actual competition. Gymnasts could only maintain peak form for so long. Now, combined with what Marty said at the bar, a gnawing sensation in his gut started to build. He took a long draft from his beer and then set it down.

"It doesn't matter," Sasha said, keeping his tone firm. "We can't focus on what we can't control."

Payson sat back and crossed her arms over her chest, fingers twisting into the swishy fabric of her Rock team jacket. "But, our plan..."

"Remains the same. I know you're the best gymnast in the world right now, Payson. You have to trust in that."

She bit her lip, looking down. "I do."

Sasha leaned forward in his chair, wanting to reach out to her across the table, take her hand and reassure her, but all he had in this moment were his words. "Even if what you think Beals was implying is true, even then your floor isn't nearly ready and your vault is fine, but not where we want it yet."

"But if I watered down my routines, if I just went out there and…"

"And if Beals decides those are the routines you should do at Worlds and you don't get to show the world what you're capable of? There are a million what-ifs, Payson. We could play that game all night."

She fell silent, but looked at him with pleading eyes. "Then what do we do?"

"Stick to the plan. Keep training. Give her no choice in the matter. Make it impossible for her to deny you," he said, trying to infuse as much confidence into his words and humanly possible. He knew they could do it, that she could do it, but only if she believed it.

He watched her inhale and exhale slowly, the same way she did before she began a routine. "Okay."

"Okay?" he asked. He needed more than that from her.

"I trust you, Sasha. Okay."

And it was that simple, in the end. Except that it wasn't. He knew it and she knew it, but for now, it was all they had.


	16. Chapter 15

"Payson Keeler seemed back in top form today during training," the disembodied voice of a reporter asked from behind a microphone, the camera focused on Ellen Beals during her post-podium training interview. "Why is she only competing on two events here at Nationals?"

"That decision was made by Payson and Coach Belov. I was impressed with Payson's level of preparedness today," Beals said, "particularly on vault."

"If you were her club coach, would she be competing all-around?" the same reporter asked.

Beals smiled, making sure everyone knew her answer before she uttered a word. "That's not my call. My job here is to decide who makes the National Team and who goes on to compete for the US at Worlds and I can only make those decisions based upon the performances put in front of me."

"God, can't you turn that off?" Payson called from her spot on the floor of Kelly's hotel suite, the one they were sharing, but which also currently housed all of the girls in their Nationals rotation.

"No, I want to hear every word she says," Emily said, in the most forceful voice Payson had ever heard her use.

They'd all retreated back to the hotel after their first day of official podium training, waiting for Sasha and Marty to get back from the men's time in the arena so they could debrief and discuss the next day's training plan. Somehow, despite being from separate clubs, they'd stuck together from the arena to the hotel and into the elevator. Payson eyed Kaylie who likely had something to do with it, given that she had barely left Lauren's side since they'd landed in Boston.

"So with Payson Keeler only competing on two events, it seems likely that Kelly Parker will repeat at National Champion, what did you see from her today?"

"Kelly Parker has everything that Team USA expects of its athletes. She showed up prepared and ready to go and I'm looking forward to her performances this weekend, as always."

"Hear that Keeler?" Kelly called out from her perch on the bed, an ice-pack the size of her head wrapped around her ankle, "you're unprepared and not ready to go."

"Shut up," Lauren shot out and Payson bristled at the unwelcome defense. Kelly was just kidding.

"It's fine, Lo," she said, leaning back and twisting her own ice-pack laden limb - hers centered on her knee - back and forth to keep the blood flowing.

Payson reached out for her phone and sighed, tossing it back onto the carpet beside her. She should have shut off notifications before she got to Boston, but she'd forgotten and now there were so many alerts she couldn't even get to her settings to shut them off. The best she could do was switch it to silent and wait for the hysteria to calm.

"Twitter still exploding?" Kaylie asked, scrolling through her own phone, favoriting tweets that mentioned her.

"Yep."

"It's your own fault for showing all four of your tumbling passes before you did your dance through. The Gymternet can add up a d-score faster than most of us can."

Payson shook her head. "They're being ridiculous. It's going to be a while until I can actually compete that routine. It's exhausting. I don't get why everyone is freaking out."

"What did you think they were going to do?" Kelly asked, her tone hitting a rare genuine note.

Payson didn't answer, but truth be told, she'd expected everyone to think she was insane for even attempting a routine that hard. She noticed a lull in her phone notifications and she flicked her fingers over the screen as fast as she could to turn them off.

Kelly hit play on her laptop screen again. "Any particular routines that stood out for you today?"

Beals smiled widely. "It's always a pleasure to watch Courtney Granger on vault. I believe she stuck her Amanar a couple of times today. Andrea Conway on bars was excellent, as usual and she's finally healthy enough to compete. I was very impressed by Lauren Tanner's beam. I'll admit to being skeptical when Marty told me about the changes in her routine, but she seems comfortable and ready to hit them under pressure."

"What about the other girl from Denver, Emily Kemko?"

Beals shrugged on the screen. "I don't really know much about her, but like I said, I'm looking forward to seeing what these girls can do under the pressure of major competition."

The interview cut out.

"Is that it?" Kaylie asked, her unvoiced what about me, not going unnoticed by the rest of them. Lauren actually rolled her eyes.

"We could check the forums," Kelly said, a note of uncertainty in her voice.

"No," Payson shouts, but she's completely overpowered by the yes votes from Kaylie, Lauren and Emily.

With a few clicks of her touchpad, Kelly looked back up at them. "Should I just read them?"

Payson groaned, but gave in. "No, we'll come to you and read them ourselves."

They all piled onto Kelly's king sized bed and surrounded her laptop as she pulled up one of the more famous gymnastics forums.

So um, Payson Keeler for World All Around Champion 2011, Olympic All Around Champion 2012 and Queen of the Universe? That sounds about right.

HER FLOOR D-SCORE IS A FUCKING 6.7, BUT NOT ONLY THAT SOMEONE TAUGHT HER HOW DO DANCE. CAN SASHA BELOV COACH ALL THE GIRLS? HE'S A GENIUS. CAN HE COACH ME IN LIFE?

Did anyone else see Kaylie Cruz's double layout on bars? It's so pretty and archy. Everyone should have to take toe point lessons from her.

She can give toe point lessons, but her routines are such a snooze fest, except maybe floor and even there she's had the same tumbling for years. I'm taking bets now that she scores exactly 14.5 on all four events. Like, what purpose does she even serve on the National Team? Send up Kaylie Cruz, get a 14.5. *falls asleep*

Who the hell is Emily Kmetko and why are there videos of that travesty of a beam routine. How did she even qualify to Nationals?

Her floor routine looked pretty good though. Shitty music and bad cheerleader choreo aside. Her bars aren't terrible either.

"That...could be worse, I guess?" Emily said, her confident voice long gone.

Courtney Granger might make the Worlds team just for her vault. It's so good. I just wish she would stick it and like force the judges to get her a ten.

They're never going to give her a ten.

"She has a gigantic leg separate on her block, she's never getting a ten," Kelly said, agreeing with the last post.

Look at my girl, Kelly Parker slaying with a double twisting Yurchenko, FINALLY. I agree, Sasha Belov is a genius. We've only been saying she needs to upgrade her vault for years. It doesn't look great (what is with that knee? WHY CAN'T SHE KEEP IT STRAIGHT?!), but it's two twists and she's going to need it at Worlds this year, especially since she didn't upgrade anywhere else.

"I don't know, maybe I didn't upgrade because I didn't want my foot to fall off the rest of my leg."

"I thought your ankle was okay?" Payson mumbled.

Kelly shrugged. "We all lie, Payson."

"What else does it say? Keep going," Lauren insisted, ignoring them.

Everyone's freaking out about Sasha Belov being a genius coach, but I'm just sitting here watching videos of his gold medal pommel horse routine. No one should be allowed to be that talented and that hot. *fans self*

"I don't see it," Kaylie said, furrowing her brow. "I mean he's nice looking, I guess, but doesn nothing for me."

"He's got premature wrinkles," Lauren said, rolling her eyes. "He's only like 29 and he looks a lot older than that."

"I'm not really into blondes, but you two are ridiculous. Sasha's hot, in that older, foreign, mysterious sort of way," Kelly said, "and he's still in amazing shape."

"He drove my mom home from the Nationals party," Emily offered up.

"Did your mom hookup with Sasha?" Lauren asked, sitting forward on her knees, making the whole bed shift.

"No," Emily said, shaking her head. "He just dropped her off, but she called him one hot crumpet."

All five girls burst into hysterical laughter at that. Payson didn't offer up her opinion on the subject. She understood exactly what that poster meant and not just because Sasha was her own personal definition of hot. It was that combined with his intensity, he brought the same fire he once infused into his gymnastics to his coaching style and it was ridiculously attractive. It was the only downside to training with him, having to steel her focus against her own traitorous body.

Listen, Lauren Tanner is a great beamer, but like, why does she insist on like humping it? There should be like an obscenity deduction or something.

"My beam routine is not obscene. It just has sizzle!"

"You look like a stripper," Kelly muttered, but kept scrolling, ignoring Lauren's outraged, "I do not!"

I know we're all talking about Payson's floor today because OH MY GOD IT'S AMAZING, but did we all forget she's training a handspring double twist on vault? If she does it at World's it'll be The Keeler. I totally get what Ellen Beals was saying too, she looks ready to go to me. I mean she could probably do half her floor routine and probably put up a decent AA score.

The girl had surgery like two months ago. Calm down. She'll be ready by Worlds, obviously and that's what matters. I think she and Sasha are smart to make sure she's ready.

BS. There are only so many times they get a chance to be in front of a crowd and on a podium. She should take advantage of that. A lot of the international girls screw up at Worlds/Olympics because they're like never in a crowded arena, dealing with noise and stuff.

Calm the fuck down. Payson Keeler has been on the Junior National team since she was 12. She's had a ton of international assignments and always done well at them. Sitting out two events at one Nationals because she's making sure she's fully healed isn't going to suddenly make her incapable of performing on a podium, in front of a crowd. Y'all need to chill.

Payson feels the eyes of the girls on her, but she just shrugs. It's nothing she hasn't thought herself, but there's nothing she can do about it now.

I think it's going to come down to her and Andrea Conway on bars at Worlds. I can't believe I'm saying this, but the US might win two bar medals in Rio! Also, someone needs to make Colleen Evans downgrade that Amanar. She's going to pop her ACL twisting into the mat like that. I don't care if it gets her extra tenths.

Evans needs that Amanar to compete AA. Without it, the rest of her gymnastics is just average.

Lindsey Walters has a nice bar routine too if she hits all her connections. They only uploaded one video of her routine, but I think if she connects the Tkatchev to the Pak, she can score 15.3-4ish.

"They only uploaded one video of her because she fell during her two other full routines," Kaylie grumbled and Payson didn't really blame her after getting shit on for her consistency just a few posts back.

Does anyone else think that Lauren Tanner has a shot at the top 3? Like her bars don't look like their usual grossness, her beam is insane and her floor looked really good today.

Her bars are still terrible though. Like, you're just comparing them to what her bars used to look like, which was a blight on the history of humanity. Now they're just...moderately awful.

Lauren snorted. "Moderately awful? Who the fuck are these people? Don't they know how hard bars are?"

"A lot harder for you than for like everyone else," Kelly shot back.

"Fuck you, Parker," Lauren nearly screeched, but Payson kept reading.

Ellen Beals really didn't seem happy that Payson is only doing bars/beam at Nationals.

When is Ellen Beals ever happy? I can't believe I'm saying this, but I miss Martha.

Okay, everyone, based on what you saw in today's videos, pick your World team right now! Mine is:

Payson Keeler

Kelly Parker

"Okay, enough," Payson said before Kelly could scroll anymore, reaching out and slamming the laptop shut. Her eyes flickered over the faces of each girl, all of whom looked pretty shaken - except for Kelly. "This is like the least mentally healthy thing we could be doing right now."

"There's nothing else to do," Kaylie complained. "I hate these days leading up to the competition. WHy can we just show up and compete?"

Lauren's phone bing'd to life and she studied it carefully before putting it back down. "Who was that?" Kaylie asked.

"Summer," she said shortly. "She says she needs to talk to me." Lauren stood up, rolling her eyes. "I'll see you guys later." Picking up her gym bag, she slipped out of the room.

"That was weird," Kelly said as the door clicked shut.

"She's been like that since before we left. I think it has something to do with her mom," Kaylie said, with a shrug.

"I should go too," Emily said, fidgeting in her place on the bed. "I'll see you guys at training tomorrow."

She was gone even faster than Lauren.

"That girl is going to have to get over that starstruck thing around us if she wants to compete against us," Kelly said, rolling her eyes.

"I'm gonna go," Kaylie said. "Carter should be done with podium training by now. Text me if Sasha ever shows up? Not that he'll really care. Consistent Kaylie, that's me, contributing nothing to the National Team."

"Kaylie…" Payson began, but trailed off, not sure what to say.

"It's fine, Pay," Kaylie said, giving her a small, forced sort of grin.

The hotel suite door opened and closed for the third time in as many minutes.

"And then there were two. You wanna order room service?" Kelly asked and Payson could feel the hesitation behind the question. She studied the other girl carefully for a moment. In the last few weeks it seemed more and more than Kelly was making genuine overtures of friendship, but for the life of her, she couldn't figure out why. "I promise not to poison your food, at least not until Worlds."

Payson snorted. "Sounds good to me." Maybe they were actually becoming friends. She was sure stranger things had happened, but in the moment she couldn't come up with a single one.

A knock at the door had Payson sliding off the bed. Through the peephole she saw Sheila Baboyan standing impatiently on the other side. She opened the door quickly and stepped back as Sheila steamrolled into the room.

"What is she doing here?" She posed the question to Kelly as if Payson weren't standing a few feet from her.

"It's a big room, I asked her if she wanted to stay with me this week. You know, show some team unity so when we're all in Rio there's no Shawn/Nastia Mean Girls crap on the internet," Kelly said it with such a straight face that for a moment Payson believed her. The genuine warmth from just a few moments ago was gone however.

"Well, I need to talk to you," Sheila said, turning to Payson, "why don't you go mooch off of someone else for a little bit, sweetums?"

Payson glanced at Kelly who nodded and so she picked up her room key from the dresser, tucked her phone into her pocket and left the mother and daughter alone, probably to discuss whatever new endorsement Sheila secured to take Kelly away from the gym even more than she already did.

"Good training session today, gentlemen," Sasha said to Nicky and Carter as they both lay back on treatment tables in a room adjacent to the main arena floor. The rest of the competitors who'd just finished their final round of podium training were spread out around the room icing and getting massages before heading back to the hotel.

"I can't believe Austin Tucker showed up with an upgraded p-bars routine," Russo complained as the trainer worked the muscles in his back.

"Yeah well, he's more likely to fall on his head than land it," Sasha grumbled, practically hearing his old coach, Nicolai's, voice in his head critiquing the borderline insane pirouette sequence Austin Tucker had added to his parallel bars set. It wasn't that Tucker couldn't land the skills, it was that his technique was sloppy and clearly unpracticed and there was no excuse for that in someone as naturally gifted as the defending Olympic champion.

"Speak of the devil," Carter muttered and Sasha turned to see the favorite to win the National Championship, again, walking towards him, trademark sunglasses perched on the top of his head.

"Boys," Austin said, nodding both Carter and Nicky, who nodded back, but then his focus moved to Sasha. "Coach, if you don't mind, could I talk to you for a second?"

"Gentlemen, finish getting treatment and then straight back to the hotel. I expect both of you in the lobby at ten sharp tomorrow morning, bus leaves at quarter past."

Not waiting for the other young men to respond, Sasha turned to Austin and nodded for him to follow as they moved to an empty corner of the training room.

"What can I do for you?"

Austin blew out a nervous breath through hollow cheeks. "You can explain to me how you managed to get Nicky Russo upgraded on pommel horse when he's been doing the same routine since he was like 16 and how Carter Anderson suddenly can stick that insanity he calls a dismount on rings?"

Sasha laughed. "I'm a coach, Austin. When I see a weakness in my athlete's repertoire, I help him overcome it."

"You think you can help me overcome mine?"

"You mean your tendency to compete upgrades that aren't quite ready and your general poor technique?"

The younger man startled at that, immediately defensive. "I'm the Olympic Champion."

Sasha smirked. "You're the Olympic Champion because three other guys fell, one of them twice. Not taking anything away from you, Tucker, but you had the day of your life in the AA in Beijing and I'm pretty sure you can't count on everyone falling in London."

Sucking in a deep breath that Sasha was pretty sure held his pride, Austin nodded. "I need a coach."

"I happen to be an excellent one."

Austin nodded. "I grew almost six inches in the last two years. It's killing me, especially on vault. I need someone who can help."

"You done growing now?" Sasha asked. Austin stood eye to eye with him, perhaps just a hair shorter. Anything more than where he stood now could prove to be a major problem.

"Doctors and trainers seem to think so. I just turned twenty-one, haven't grown in the last few months."

"And what does your coach think?"

"He doesn't know what to do with me," Austin said, rubbing a nervous palm over the back of his head. "Harry's great, but he comes up to my shoulder and I know he's at the end of his rope trying to put together workable routines."

Sasha nodded, glancing behind him at his two top male gymnasts, neither of whom would be thrilled by this development.

"I get it if you have to talk to your guys," Austin said, "but I'd really like to start after Nationals. I can't risk showing up at Worlds and flopping. I'd lose my sponsors going into the pre-Olympic rush and without sponsors, I can't afford to train outside of the OTC where I'll just fade into the background with all the others."

"Anyone ever tell you you're a bit melodramatic?" Sasha asked, arms crossing over his chest.

Austin raised his eyes to the ceiling, as if thinking, then nodded. "Once or twice."

"Alright, Austin Tucker, you're in. I'm sure MJ gave you a run-down about how things are done at the Rock, so I'll spare you the speeches about commitment and dedication. Just don't make me regret this." He held out his hand and Austin shook it.

"Thanks Coach."

"Don't thank me yet. I fully expect you to be cursing my name before Rio."

By the time Sasha got back to the hotel, word had spread. The gymnastics community was a small one and when everyone was stuck together in one city for a week it was even smaller. No fewer than fifteen people had stopped him on his way back to the arena to congratulate him on Austin Tucker's move to the Rock. He stepped off the elevator on his floor, where most of the Rock's contingent were stay, only to see Payson emerge from a doorway a few feet away.

She looked up and smiled at him wearily and he grinned back. "You okay?" he asked. Stopping just a few feet in front of him, she nodded, swaying forward just a little. For the smallest fraction of a second, his instincts urged him to take a step into her, let her fall forward into his chest and hold her there, but it was gone as quickly as it came. He shook his head, trying to clear it. "You look tired."

"Just what every girl likes to hear," she said, the weariness leaving her face, replaced with a brighter smile.

"I didn't mean..." he said, even though he knew she was teasing

She waved him off. "I guess the time difference is catching up," she said with a small shrug. Just then her phone lit up in her pocket, the screen visible through the thin nylon. She ignored it.

"You should take a nap."

"Sheila has commandeered the room. Very secret business to discuss with Kelly."

"I'll bet."

The conversation was fading and to be honest, he could do with a nap himself. There wasn't anything else to talk about, but Sasha's feet refused to move from the spot.

"Do you…" they said the words at the same time.

"Go ahead," Payson said, a pink tinge spreading across the apples of her cheeks.

"I was going to say, I could use a cup of tea. There's a little shop in the lobby. Apparently some idiot social media guy posted video online of all the routines today and the internet is going crazy, but we could go over them, see what we have to work on for tomorrow?"

Payson laughed. "I was going to say the same thing."

"Somehow, Payson Keeler," he said, pushing the down button for the elevator, "I'm not surprised."


	17. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A note on the timeline before we get started. This fic takes place in 2010. The show never properly explained the timeline they were using and so I had to try and rework what they gave us into making some sort of linear sense. The pilot was filmed in 2009, but that doesn't make sense as the girls refer to Nationals as "their last Nationals" in that episode. They make the 2009 National Team, their ages never move from 16 through the show's entire tenure, Kelly Parker is somehow the World Champion in season 2 after what? Winning 2008 Worlds? Impossible because Worlds didn't happen in 2008, as it was an Olympic year. So...just for clarification, in this fic: Kelly and Payson finished 1-2 at Nationals the year before this fic takes place: 2009. Payson was a 1st year senior, Kelly a 2nd year senior (she attempted and didn't make the Olympic team in 2008). This Nationals is 2010. In this timeline, 2010 Worlds will be taking place in Rio (like the show), but the girls are working towards the 2012 Olympics in London. When I refer to "Rio" I mean 2010 Worlds. Also in this fic, the girls age appropriately. Payson would have had to have been 16 in 2009 to have competed as a senior, thus she (along with Lauren, Kaylie and Emily) is 17 in 2010. I've given Kelly Parker a year on them. She's 18. Again, Payson didn't go to Worlds in 2009 because of her back injury. Kelly won the AA. It was an "Individual Worlds" instead of a team competition, just like in real life during the post-Olympic year. Okay? Okay. Also, if you ever have any questions like this, please feel free to leave them in a review, as one of my lovely reviewers did. If she was confused, odds are some of you were as well and I never wanted you to be confused!
> 
> Okay, all that being said. Here we go...

"Okay ladies," Sasha said after they marched into the arena for their second day of official podium training, this one with members of the media present. "Today we treat like the competition, run through our events exactly as we will tomorrow and Sunday. We have the start lists and Marty has agreed to follow the lineups exactly as we rotate through." He nodded to where Marty was huddled with Lauren and Emily.

They would start on vault during the first day of competition and thus began their podium training there as well. On the other side of the vault run, Ellen Beals stood between the raised podium of the vault and floor set-ups watching the girls slated to go first on floor warm-up their tumbling. It was the perfect position to watch all four events.

"Sasha?" Payson asked from his side, her question implicit in just the sound of his name. She wanted to show her vault again, but she wouldn't do it without his say-so.

He turned and looked down, making sure to hold eye contact with her. He was loathe to tell her no. Rubbing a frustrated palm over his jaw, he shook his head. "Today is about tomorrow, Payson. Stay warm and get your grips on for bars." He let his hand fall to her shoulder. She twisted her mouth into a small pout, her eyes soft, but pleading. He flexed his fingers against her skin, letting out a soft puff of laughter. "That's not going to work on me."

She raised her eyebrows, eyes widening in confusion. "What?"

"You know," he said, a half smirk pulling at his mouth and the cloud of confusion passed out of her eyes as they filled with laughter. He'd caught her. "Get ready for bars."

"I had to give it a shot," she said, laughing outright now. "It's worked before."

He shook his head, unable to stop the smirk from becoming a full smile and turned to the other girls who were at the end of the vault run now, waiting for him and Marty to set up the springboard and mats for their warmups. "Not today."

The girls ran through vault well, especially Kelly who seemed to have more spring in her step than usual, her double twisting Yurchenko cleaner than he'd seen it since they began working together on the new vault and Kaylie stuck all three Yurchenko one and a halfs she attempted before their time ran out.

"Nice work, ladies," he said, glaring at the NGO's social media director, feverishly uploading more training videos as the athletes moved through the simple maze of raised platforms. It was important for the sport's growth to have as much exposure to these event as possible.

Four of the girls ran off to the chalk bowl as a chime sounded in the arena, but Kaylie swung up on the bars immediately as she'd be going first the next day.

"Sasha Belov," a voice called from just behind him. Kaylie finished her routine and Lauren swung up next. He turned and saw a tall woman a few years older than him with dark hair and sharp eyes.

"You have me at a disadvantage," he said, politely.

"Katarina Paynik, Stanford University," she said, handing him a card.

Tilting his head. "I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to be on the floor."

"Ellen Beals and I went to college together. She owes me one...or more than one," Katarina said, winking.

"Well then, what can I do for you, Coach Paynik?"

"You can tell Payson Keeler that Stanford University is the best place to take her gold medals after London. I know Marty Walsh had a closed door policy on college recruiting for girls on his Olympic track, but I have a feeling you're a little different."

"Good instincts, unfortunately, Payson signed with an agent just a few days ago, so I'm afraid you're a little too late."

"An agent? This far out from the Games? That's unusual," Katarina said, her brow furrowing. "I will say she looked incredible in training yesterday. I guess it was wishful thinking on my part." Her eyes flashed up to the bars and Sasha followed her gaze to the girl dismounting with a full-in, looking much more solid than it had a week ago. "Who is that?"

"Emily Kmetko," Marty provided for her, sidling up to the conversation. "And with her, Kat, I may be willing to make an exception on my scholarship embargo."

Sasha left them to it, moving closer to the podium as Emily finished with a full-in, looking much better than it had a few weeks before. Then Payson swung up into her routine. None of the Rock girls required spotting in their bar routines which allowed him the chance to simply watch and critique for later.

"She just floats doesn't she?" Ellen Beals said, moving to stand beside him. "Incredible."

"She is something else," Sasha agreed. At the very least, Beals knew what she was looking at when Payson competed.

"I noticed she didn't train vault today."

Sasha bristled. He wasn't going to give into this woman, no matter what power the NGO gave her. "We wanted to make this into a mock competition to prep for tomorrow."

"I think you're making a mistake holding her back on vault and floor."

"She's not ready yet. She will be."

Beals hummed noncommittally and Sasha turned to say more, but she was already gone, Marcus Collins wandering up in her place.

"Marcus," Sasha said, before nodding to Payson in approval as she went back to chalk up again. Kelly starting up her routine. "I have an athlete who is worried that by not competing on a particular event here, she might not get another opportunity to earn that chance for Worlds. Should I be concerned?" He turned to the other man with a brow cocked.

"That's insane," Marcus said, an expression of genuine confusion sliding over his face. "It's three months before Rio. There's plenty of time to…"

"Maybe you should check in with the National Coordinator then," Sasha suggested. He didn't think this was a problem. At most it was likely an inexperienced coordinator trying to throw her weight around a little as she tried to step into the shoes of a legend, but it didn't hurt to make sure.

Marcus shook his head. "I don't have to. I'm on the Worlds Selection Committee. The process takes into account all performances from now through the last selection camp in October. You and Payson, I assume, have nothing to worry about."

"Good then," Sasha said, refocusing on Kelly's routine, just as she finished. "Good job, Kelly. Focus on those bent elbows second time through." Kaylie moved into place and began her routine as Kelly nodded and went for more chalk.

There, he'd done his due diligence and now he could reassure Payson that they were on the right path.

Payson flopped down on her king-sized bed across the suite from Kelly's. "What the hell did MJ want me to say? That jerk of a reporter asked me if I wasn't competing floor and vault because I was scared. I mean I could have told him to shove it up his ass, but instead I just said, 'No. I'm not scared.' What else was there to say?"

Kelly chucked a pillow at her, missing her head by just an inch, her aim likely impeded by the gigantic ice pack on her ankle and the mountain of cushions she was using to keep it elevated. "You should have said that you're still recovering from your surgery and that you and Sasha don't want to push it this far out from Worlds. You know, the actual reason why. Jeez, Keeler, I mean it's not like that's even a lie."

"I know," she groaned, picking up the small stack of index cards MJ had shoved into her hands when they got back to the hotel with acceptable answers for reporters until she had some media training. "I just freeze up when they shove a microphone in my face. It's not a natural way to talk to someone."

"You weren't this bad when we were little. I have distinct memories of when we were in Italy like three years ago where you just chatted your little blonde head off to a reporter. My mom wanted to strangle you for being so charming."

"They weren't asking anything important back then," Payson argued. Now it was all about Nationals and Worlds and the Olympics. Back then they just thought she was cute as a button, no matter what she said.

"They still aren't. Your gymnastics has nothing to do with the questions those reporters ask. Most of them don't know the difference between a kip and a Tkatchev. Don't give them that let of respect. Keep it sweet and fluffy or even serious and captain-y if that's the style you want to take."

"Captain-y?" Payson asked, sitting up, confused.

"Yeah, that whole 'follow me into battle, I'll lead us to victory' thing you've got going on. It works for you, especially since it totally contrasts your look. No one expects the pretty blonde girl to be tough as nails. It's marketing gold. Why do you think MJ wanted you so badly?"

"Because she thinks I'm a great gymnast?" Payson asked, already knowing that wasn't the answer Kelly had in mind.

"Well yes, but a great gymnast with a narrative. There are a lot of really good athletes out there that no one gives a crap about because they're boring as hell. I mean you should be boring as hell too…"

"Thanks."

"You want to go back to memorizing those cards or do you want my help?"

"Help please," she said, tossing the cards aside.

"As I was saying, you should be boring too. Midwestern blonde girls are fun for a minute, but that's all. Midwestern blonde girls who exude that thing you do when you talk about winning and Team USA and how good we are, that's different."

"I don't even know what you're talking about. I don't exude anything. I just think it's important to go out and show the world that we're the best. Especially since we are. Every girl at Nationals would be an asset to almost any other National Team. It's an embarrassment of riches and makes us all better, in the end."

Kelly threw another pillow at her and Payson caught it before it could hit her in the face. "See! You just did it again and it's natural for you. It's actually who you are. Do you know how much media training I had to have before I nailed the, bubbly, fun, confident thing my mom wanted to sell me as? A lot. I should strangle you in your sleep for being able to just be yourself."

It was something to think about. She didn't know what kind of persona MJ had in mind with the media training she kept talking about, but what Kelly said made sense. She just hadn't realized that the answers that popped into her head when reporters asked were acceptable responses, they always felt too analytical, too serious compared to what everyone else did in front of the camera.

She didn't want to think about this anymore. The only thing that mattered was tomorrow and she needed to clear her head. "Do you want to go to the men's competition tonight?"

Kelly nodded. "Yeah, I promised some sponsors I'd be there, plus it looks good to cheer on the guys."

Payson rolled her eyes. Heaven forbid that she just wanted to go. "Okay good. I'm going to get some laps in before we have to leave." She dug through her suitcase, but despite having distinct memories of packing her bathing suit, it wasn't there.

"What's up?" Kelly said, at Payson's frustrated groan.

"I can't find my suit and I want to swim because it's low impact."

"Here," Kelly said, rummaging into her own bag and tossing two pieces of white polyester in her direction. "It's a two piece so it should fit okay."

Payson eyed the scraps of material. It wasn't what she would have chosen, but it was her only option. Throwing it on, it fit reasonably well. She wasn't falling out of it at least. The top was a racerback style and the bottoms a classic bikini that sat low on her hips. It wasn't like it would fall off while she was swimming. She threw shorts and a tank top on over it, grabbed her bag and a towel. "See you in about an hour."

Sasha only had a little more than an hour until he had to be back at the arena for the first day of the men's competition. The adrenaline was building in his system, an involuntary reaction to the knowledge that there was a medal to be won. He never lost that desire to be out there on the floor demanding superhuman feats from a body that could no longer handle them, so he had to use up all that energy beforehand. A coach needed to be calm and collected for his athletes.

Changing quickly into loose shorts and a t-shirt, he went straight for the gym on the hotel's top floor, a large sprawling facility with a wall of glass windows overlooking the Olympic sized swimming pool roped off into lanes for laps. It was the middle of the day and since most of the hotel was full of guests in Boston for the gymnastics, completely empty. Grabbing a treadmill along the wall of windows, Sasha set it to start at a brisk walk, wanting to get straight into his run. His knee likely wouldn't thank him later, but he'd dealt with pain before, he could do it again.

He fiddled with his old iPod, one of the first ones to be released that would probably break if he ever tried to update it and pulled in his headphones and just let it pick up where he'd left it off. The harmonic guitars of The Mountain Goats Up the Wolves struck up a beat he could run to and he increased the pace of the whirring machine beneath his feet.

Looking up and staring through the windows, his gaze caught on a woman wandering into the pool area, tossing a towel on one of the many empty lounge chairs that surrounded it along with a small bag. She shimmied out of shorts and tossed her tank top on top of the pile. Her long blonde hair swung down her back and she quickly tied it up at the top of her head, unveiling a white two piece suit, not the most revealing he'd ever seen, but perhaps made for someone a little less curvy than her. It wasn't unattractive, the opposite in fact, as Sasha felt his pulse thrum in a way that had nothing to do with his run. She was completely unaware of her audience however, diving straight into the pool, her long, lithe body hitting perfect form as she broke the surface of the water and swam beneath it before rising up into a freestyle stroke. Christ, she was beautiful. He tried to look away as she swam closer, but it was impossible. Executing a perfect somersault in the water, she flipped over and began the journey back, this time shifting into a breast stroke. Was she a swimmer? She hadn't seemed tall enough when he first saw her, but then again he'd been a 6'1" gymnast and done quite well for himself. She was definitely an athlete, the strong muscles of her legs and arms powering her at an impressive pace through the water.

He was mesmerized by her as she swam lap after lap, not even noticing his own breath coming short, his legs burning and his knee aching as he ran long past the time he intended to stop, even increasing the length of the workout on the treadmill a few times as an excuse to stay. She hadn't stopped and he wasn't going to be the first to give in, engaging in a battle she had no idea she'd started.

Finally she pulled herself out of the far end of the pool, her shoulders heaving as droplets that he couldn't see from that distance, but that he knew were there, created rivers on her skin. He wanted to stand beside her holding that towel she was using to dry off, wrapping her in it and drawing her into him, maybe catching one of those droplets at the hollow of her collarbone with his tongue. It was then his knee went from weakly protesting to screaming in agony, so he gave in, lowering the speed of the treadmill to a walk, having won the imaginary battle. Maybe he should forgo the rest of his cool down and try to intercept her, find out her name, ask her to a drink tonight and breakfast tomorrow, should the drink go well enough.

When he looked up again, the woman was dressed, tossing the towel into the bin at the corner of the pool enclosure. She started walking toward him and as she approached, his nearsightedness began to clear and her features came into sharper focus.

"Shit," Sasha cursed, nearly tripping over his own feet as the treadmill automatically slowed further during it's cool-down stage. He stepped off the machine before he killed himself. Payson. How the hell had he not recognized her? And now she was so close that she could see him in through the windows that separated the gym from the pool. A bright smile slid over her features and she raised her hand, jogging the last few steps to the door between the rooms.

His mind was trying, unsuccessfully, to wrap itself around the idea that this wasn't someone to be desired as she made her way over to him. "Hey, I thought you'd already be at the arena?"

Glancing at the time on his iPod, he cursed. He should be done with his shower and headed to the lobby already. "Lost track of time," he managed to choke out. "Did you enjoy your swim?"

She nodded. "I used to do it competitively before I had to give it up for gymnastics."

"I could tell. Good form," he said, proud he'd managed to respond to what she'd actually said when his eyes wouldn't look away from her mouth. "I've gotta go. Are you going later?"

"Yeah, just gonna grab a shower and then head over," she said and his heart nearly gave out at the word shower. He needed to get out there and quickly.

"Good, good," he said, moving around her. "I'll see you later, Payson."

After the coldest shower of his life and tossing on his black coaching jacket and the horrible matching tracksuit bottoms, he raced out into the hallway, but came to an abrupt halt as he nearly ran over a couple standing outside of what he knew to be Carter and Nicky's room. The girl jumped, pulling away from a rather innocent looking kiss. Sasha actually groaned when he saw it was Payson. As if things weren't going to be awkward enough.

"Hi Sasha," she said with a tight smile and then gave him a short wave before turning away and leaving the boy - Nicky Russo as it happened - to deal with him.

"Sasha…" the kid trailed off, sheer terror playing over his face, but Sasha didn't have the mental acuity at the moment to deal with any of it.

"Let's go, Russo. We'll discuss it later." Or never. After all, how could he blame the kid when he was thinking of doing so much more less than a half hour ago? The image of Russo's lips pressed against Payson's popped into his head again and he realized he could in fact blame the kid quite a lot.

"What happened?" Kaylie nearly shrieked, turning in her seat as the men's competition played out on the floor almost exactly as expected with Austin Tucker taking the lead in the first rotation and pulling steadily away from the field after each event.

"Nicky kissed me. I was going back to my parents room to see if my bathing suit got into one of their suitcases by accident after I had to borrow Kelly's and he was coming out of his room. I don't even know what happened. I wished him luck and he seemed so, I don't know, down? Like he knew he doesn't have a chance to win," she said, flicking her fingers up at the scoreboard and so I just leaned in and kissed him.

"Was there tongue?" Lauren asked, bending over into their row from her seat in the row above them.

"No, I mean, maybe. I think there was about to be, but then Sasha walked out of his room."

"Sasha saw you!" Kaylie stage-whispered.

"I pulled away fast, but I'm pretty sure he knew what happened. God, this is such a mess. I don't even like him."

"Good luck convincing him of that now," Kelly said, with a snort. "Nicky Russo is a troll, but like pretty sure kissing someone is the universal sign for I like you."

"Was it good, at least?" Kaylie asked.

Payson shrugged. "It was nice? I don't know. The kissing part was good, I just don't think he's the one I want to be kissing."

"Fine, whatever. How did you manage to make kissing sound super boring?" Lauren asked. "I have some news though."

"Been kissing someone, Tanner?" Kelly asked and Emily snorted, the first sound she'd made since they all sat down together.

Lauren just glared. "My mother is coming to the competition tomorrow!"

"Oh my God, that's awesome, Lo! She got time off from her relief work?"

"Yep!" Lauren answered, a little too quickly. "She's between assignments right now and Boston is so much easier to fly into than Boulder, so she's coming!"

"That's great, Lauren," Payson said, meaning it. She knew how much Lauren missed her mom, especially with the rumors going around that Steve Tanner was probably going to marry his secretary-cum-girlfriend sooner rather than later.

"Yeah," Lauren said, sitting back into her seat, "tomorrow is going to be perfect."


	18. Chapter 17

Payson opened the door, gym bag over her shoulder, Kelly right behind her and she nearly walked right into Nicky Russo, fist raised in the air to knock. Her stomach sank and then twisted into a knot. She'd been hoping to put this off until at least the NGO party tonight. The last thing she needed was to have her focus tossed around by that ridiculous kiss

"Hi," he said, opening his hand and giving her a short wave despite standing just a foot or so away.

Kelly knocked into her shoulder, pushing past her and Nicky gave way for the double braid buns headed right for him. "The bus leaves in like five minutes, Payson," she said, nodding to where Joel, their security guard was waiting at the elevator bay to escort them through the lobby.

"Sorry about yesterday. Leaving you with Sasha like that." She wasn't sorry. She'd taken the out and been relieved to do it. She still had no idea where the urge to kiss him came from and she wasn't in a hurry to repeat it or to talk to Sasha about it once he inevitably brought it up.

Nicky shrugged. "He never really said anything about it, but that's not why I'm here. I wanted to wish you luck," Nicky said, looking down, but then shooting her a small smile.

Payson nearly groaned. "Look, Nicky," she started. "I just...I don't know what came over me yesterday. I don't really do this."

"Accept good lucks?" he asked, his face a gentle mockery of confusion. She supposed if she was actually interested in him, she would have found it sweet or charming.

"You know what I mean. I just don't do this," she said, gesturing between the two of them. "And you're great -" Kelly coughed from her vantage point, but Payson heard the word troll buried behind it, "I'm sorry. I don't...I'm not looking for…"

Nicky rocked back on his heels, a grimace forming in place of the hopeful smile he'd greeted her with. "I get it."

"You do?"

"Yeah, Sasha told me to stay away from you and I guess he told you the same thing and I get it. You don't want to jeopardize your career."

Payson's mind whirled. Sasha had warned Nicky off her? She hadn't realized Nicky had been that obvious about his feelings, but regardless she felt a spike of annoyance at Sasha, again, making decisions about her without talking to her, particularly when it wasn't about gymnastics. She thought they'd moved past that.

"I'm sorry," she said with a small shrug.

"Don't apologize. If I was thinking clearly I probably would do the same thing."

Brow furrowing, she tilted her head. "Thanks?"

He shrugged. "I don't think clearly around you."

Shaking her head, wanting to be able to drudge up offense at his words, but finding herself oddly unaffected, Payson said, "I'll see you later then."

Moving past him, she made eye contact with Kelly, her face twisting into complete bewilderment. What did that mean, that he didn't think clearly around her? Did she even care?

"That was weird," she muttered as Leon led her and Kelly onto the elevator.

"He's a troll," Kelly sing-songed and Leon let out a snort.

"Ladies, when the elevator reaches the bottom floor, I'll lead you out. There are probably a few dozen girls downstairs. Some of the other athletes stopped for pictures and autographs, but unfortunately we don't have that kind of time, so please just follow me straight to the bus. I'll be the bad guy the gym moms can blame."

True to his word, Leon announced loudly that the girls couldn't stop to sign anything or take selfies as they made their way around the corner of the elevator bay, out of the lobby through the throng of people gathered there and down the stairs into the awaiting coach bus.

"Nice of you guys to show up," Lauren quipped from her seat beside Kaylie.

Kelly moved to the back of the bus near the other girls, but Payson paused at the empty seat next to Sasha. "I'll be there in a sec," she murmured to Kelly, before sitting beside him.

"What's up?" he asked, surprised.

She wanted an honest answer and pulling her punches wouldn't get her one."Did you tell Nicky Russo to stay away from me?" she asked.

Sasha's expression darkened and there was an awkwardness shaded by affront in his voice as he said, "I simply reminded him how limited a female gymnast's peak years are and…"

Payson cut him off. "I don't need you to do that. I'm perfectly capable of handling Nicky Russo."

"Yes," he muttered back. "You made that quite clear yesterday morning."

Narrowing her eyes, annoyance giving her courage she wouldn't otherwise possess, she leaned in and whispered, "I am not interested in Nicky Russo. What you saw was nothing, but it doesn't make it your business. You're my coach, not my brother."

Sasha pulled back, putting some space between them. She hadn't even realized how close she'd gotten. "I know that, believe me." She blinked. "I'm sorry."

She knew that tone of was sincere. Nodding, she made to get up, but his hand on hers stopped her. He didn't say anything more, but simply squeezed his fingers into her palm. Warmth from the touch spilled over her skin, up her arm and settled into her chest. Nodding, she squeezed back and then stood up, moving to her seat next to Kelly as the bus pulled away from the hotel.

"Everything okay?" Kaylie asked from across the aisle.

Payson nodded and smiled. "Everything's great."

Standing beside the vaulting table, Payson saluted the judges, touched the vault and then saluted again, scratching the event. It still annoyed her, knowing that her vault would likely outscore most of the other competitors on the floor, but when Sasha nodded to her as he moved up onto the podium to set up the springboard for Kelly's vault, the tension in her shoulders relaxed.

Jogging down the stairs to the line of chairs up against the walls separating the competition floor from the crowd, she made brief eye contact with Tim Daggett sitting at the broadcast table. "We won't see a vault from Payson Keeler today. She had surgery on her back only about two months ago and she and coach Sasha Belov are playing it safe, but I've seen her train vault and floor this week and let me tell you, she outclasses the field. If all goes well between now and October, we could be looking at the next World Champion."

Digging through her bag, she pulled out her grips and heard the crowd applaud Kelly's vault. Glancing up at the large screen suspended from the ceiling, she saw a quick replay - a solid double twisting Yurchenko - and then gave Kelly a quick side-hug when she joined her to prepare for the next rotation while the other girls vaulted.

Vault was always the quickest of the four events, each competitor taking only a few seconds for their turn and the judges posting scores almost as fast. All four girls in the "Colorado Rotation" as the rest of the competitors were calling it had hit their vaults well, though Kaylie seemed frustrated. Payson understood the feeling of competing routines that weren't up to her own standard of excellence. She'd had to downgrade every single routine she performed at Nationals the year before thanks to her back, but Kaylie didn't have anyone or anything to blame but herself. A Yurchenko one and a half wasn't going to cut it anymore, not if she wanted to win.

Sitting down on the chair, Payson's eyes flashed up to the screen again where Andrea Conway from Boston was swinging on bars. She was halfway through her routine already, nailing an in-bar half to Jaeger on the high bar, similar to the one Payson would perform in just a few minutes, though Payson did hers in the piked position, making it just slightly harder. It could mean the difference between bars gold at the competition and if she was only going to compete on two events, Payson wanted to win both of them.

Andrea finished her bar routine and pulled a decent 15.4 from the judges, but Payson knew she could be better, as long as she hit her connections.

Glancing up at the scoreboard, one of the few times she'd allow herself to do so for the rest of the day. Once she was competing there wouldn't be any time for analyzing scores.

1\. CONWAY, Andrea - 15.4

2\. ATCHINSON, Beth - 14.8

3\. PARKER, Kelly - 14.7

4\. TANNER, Lauren - 14.7

5\. CRUZ, Kaylie - 14.3

6\. KMETKO, Emily - 14.2

There was nothing unusual about the top six. Beth was a good beamer and had probably hit her routine to score that well and Andrea's 15.4 was definitely on her strongest apparatus. She'd likely move into second or third after the next rotation.

The board flashed through the next six and then the next until the last place spot popped onto the screen: KEELER, Payson - 0.0. Tightening her grips again, she took a deep breath. When she swung up onto those bars, she was going to make sure she posted the highest score of the day.

"I noticed Nicky Russo isn't sitting with the Rock guys," Lauren said, sidling up to her under the guise handing her a cake of chalk. Payson didn't make it a habit of looking into the stands during the competition unless she knew exactly where her family was sitting.

"So?" she asked.

"So, he's not here to cheer you on after your little make-out session yesterday?"

"I don't think I'm Nicky's favorite person right now," Payson said, shrugging. "I told him it was a mistake."

Lauren snorted. "That was fast. Jesus, Payson, you know what that's called right? That's being a tease. You can't just kiss a guy and then tell him you're not interested."

Payson shrugged again. "Well, I did."

"And she was right to," Kelly said, moving closer. "Nicky Russo is a troll. That wasn't being a tease, that was temporary insanity, right PK?"

"Lauren," Marty called, waving her over, probably wanting to go over her bar routine.

Payson turned to Kelly and held out her fist, already encased in her grips and chalk. Kelly knocked her own fist against it. "Thanks."

A klaxon and trumpeting sounded through the arena's speakers and they all grabbed their bags and lined up to move to the next rotation, making their way through the maze of raised podium from the vault to the uneven bars. Dropping their bags on the chairs that lined the wall near the bars, they followed the girl holding their rotation sign up the podium stairs and lined up in front of the judges. The klaxon sounded again and they pivoted immediately, working through bar warmups the same way they had the day before, in the order they'd go during the rotation.

Kaylie dismounted after her warm-up, her shoulders tense as she slipped past Marty who moved toward the bars to spot Lauren as she swung through the first part of her bars routine, heavy with release combinations. Payson had to give her that, Marty was one distraction that was not Kaylie's fault. Sasha stood off the podium entirely, knowing none of her girls wanted or needed bars spots.

The warm-up felt good and Payson felt a rush of adrenaline that had been missing all morning begin to flow through her body. She loved gymnastics, but maybe the only thing she loved more was competing gymnastics.

"All good?" Sasha asked as she jumped down from the podium and adjusted her grips again. Yet another klaxon rang out and the warm-ups were over, only Kaylie left standing on the podium waiting for the judge's signal to go.

"All good," she said, twisting back and forth. Her back didn't ache at all, not even the soft twinges she'd felt after the surgery. She'd resigned herself earlier in the year to competing in tremendous pain, maybe for the rest of her career, but it was thanks to this man that she felt so incredible. She wanted to thank him and she knew the best way to do that was to nail her bar routine.

Sasha held his breath for the fraction of a second that Kaylie released and then caught the bar on her Jaeger. Now just the final pirouette, three giants to build up momentum and she released into a double layout, body arching in that aesthetically pleasing way judges seemed to love. She landed a little short, taking a hop forward to steady herself. He clapped along with the rest of the crowd and high-fived her with both hands when she jumped down off the podium. It was a good set, he just wished he'd had more time with her before Nationals. They had over two years until London though and if he could get her to buy in, she could really fly on bars.

"Good job, Kaylie," he said, as she began to pull at her grips and the tape she'd used to wrap her wrists before her routine. They waited as she took a drink from her water bottle and then finally the score was posted, a 14.6. A notch higher than he'd expected. Kaylie nodded at the score and then turned her attention to Lauren who saluting the judges.

Sasha managed to keep the grimace off his face, but the unease Lauren had with the apparatus was clear. Her shoulders just didn't possess the flexibility necessary to swing through her skills rather than muscle herself into and out of them. Her lack of height helped her get into handstand position, but the routine was missing the elegance bar judges so often looked for on the event. She made it look like work. Dismounting with the same double layout that Kaylie had just performed, though her body shape ramrod straight highlighting the difference in styles even more so when performed back to back. Just a few feet away Marty let out a, "Yeah!" and clapped. Sasha supposed the goal was more get through the routine than perfecting the skills themselves.

Moments later a score of 14.2 flashed up, and Lauren looked thrilled with it as she hugged Kaylie. Glancing at the scoreboard Sasha saw the two best friends and former teammates tied at exactly 28.9.

The girls smiled at their names together on the leaderboard, but the smiles both faded when Emily Kmetko finished her routine with a full-in that had clearly improved tremendously from the Rock Invitational and her two event score of 29 jumped her name above theirs.

Payson stood on the podium, rubbing chalk into her grips when one of the judges turned to her. "We're waiting to come out of commercial. It's going to be about a minute." It made sense, as Sasha glanced around the arena, there weren't any notable routines being performed and NBC would want to get Payson's routine live.

Sasha searched her face, but there didn't appear to be any stress there at the news. She simply stretched her neck back and forth and shook out her arms and legs. There wasn't much that could rattle her, not even getting into her coach's face to overstepping the line before the meet, especially when said same coach had spent the night trying to banish images of her in that white bikini from his mind. Not that she knew any of that. Not that she ever would. Then just when he'd managed to file it away and swear never to think about it again, she leaned in close, the smell of her shampoo mingling with his own cologne and her eyes had flashed at him.

The judge raised the green flag and Payson stepped up between the high bar and the low, saluted the judges and then glared at the low bar the same way she'd glared at him earlier that morning. Her swing had a natural quality to it, partly from trust in herself and partly from hours upon hours of hard work. The connections that weren't ready for the Invitational had been added seamlessly into this routine, her pike Jaeger into the Pak and then straight back up to the high bar with a Shaposhnikova, twisting halfway around between the bars and catching, keeping her swing light. The crowd gasped together and then applauded. They hadn't been expecting that. She swung back up into a handstand, pirouetted on the highbar one last before before releasing into a full-in, the placeholder for the triple twisting fly-away that she wasn't able to land consistently quite yet.

Still, that was a medal worth bar routine, perhaps even gold medal depending upon what the rest of the world had put together in the last year. She jumped down from the podium with a huge smile on her face and went straight for him, arms flying around his neck. His closed around her and he spun in place before setting her down. "Beautiful," he said and let his smile match hers. "That last inbar could have been a little tighter."

She nodded, at the small correction and started unwrapping her grips, her focus now likely entirely on beam. He'd watched her on TV in years past and he'd never seen her even glance at her own scores. Kaylie came over and gave her a quick hug, as did Emily and finally Lauren, the latter likely because there was a handheld camera focused on Payson and it would be broadcasting live.

The crowd murmured anxiously as the judges took their time putting up the score, but then a 15.6 flashed on the screen and the informed fans applauded them rewarding the difficulty and execution just displayed.

"Come on, Kelly," Payson said, turning to her teammate who was now ready to go.

"Elbows," Sasha added in a last minute reminder about the little form issue that had been plaguing Kelly's routine for the last two weeks or so.

The green flag went up and Kelly saluted.

"Toe-on shaposh," Payson mumbled to herself as Kelly began her routine and performed the same skills. "Pak, kip up to handstand, toe-on shaposh half - watch that leg separation." Sasha grimaced a little as Kelly's legs came apart as she moved up from low bar to high, her feet flexing as well. "Toe on, half to Jaeger. Toe on, full to bail," she continued and then louder, "Good!" when Kelly hit her bail in perfect handstand. "Toe on, shoot," her voice wobbled a little as Kelly hit a slight dead hang on the highbar having to muscle up a bit to finish her routine. "One, two, three," she counted the giants, "double layout, STICK!" Kelly stuck it.

Sasha applauded as Kelly saluted the judges, the crowd roaring for a hit routine from their National and World Champion. She raised an eyebrow at him and tilted her head and he laughed. "Good on the elbows."

"Thanks Belov," Kelly said with a laugh.

"Great job, KP," Payson said, offering her two fists. Kelly knocked against them and Kaylie even moved away from Lauren for a moment to give her a fist bump too.

There wasn't time to wait for her score, their rotation was the largest and thus all the other events had wrapped up before Kelly had even begun her routine. They rotated over to beam, little girls hanging over the sides of the arena squealing and waving at the girls.

"So far so good," Marty said as they made it to the far end of the arena.

Sasha looked up to the leaderboard and nodded. So far so good indeed. Through two rotations, four of their girls were in the top six.

1\. PARKER, Kelly - 29.7

2\. CONWAY, Andrea - 29.7

3\. ATCHINSON, Beth - 29.2

4\. KMETKO, Emily - 29.0

5\. CRUZ, Kaylie 28.9

6\. TANNER, Lauren - 28.9

And then far at the bottom, but with the top score of the day so far: KEELER, Payson - 15.6.

Watching as Emily led off on the beam however, Sasha knew it wouldn't stay that way. Balance beam was often what separated the good gymnasts from the great gymnasts, but it also had a way of separating the average from the good. If Emily Kmetko simply wanted to be a good gymnast she was going to have to conquer the balance beam. When he'd trained in Romania, balance beam had been a way of life for the female gymnasts, if you couldn't handle beam, you couldn't be a Romanian gymnast, it was as simple as that. Again, though, just like she had at the Rock Invitational, Emily battled while standing atop those four inches, her arms waving, her center losing it's hold on gravity, her body not holding form in her skills, but she didn't fall. Then when a score of 14.2 went up, Sasha couldn't help but feel like the judges had rewarded her simply for not giving up.

"Let's go Payson," Sasha said as the other girls congratulated Emily.

On her only other event of the day there was wasn't a balance check or wobble to be found, not a toe out of place, not a heel set down too early. Unlike her bar routine, the dismount they'd been training for beam was ready, so as she stood tall about three quarters of the way from the end of the beam, the crowd fell into a hush, waiting. Then she launched into a bank handspring, her toes pointed, not even the flicker of a bend in her legs as she added another back handspring, powering herself into the air, turning halfway into an arabian double front, sticking it cold.

"Yes!" he yelled, pumping his fist into the air as the rest of the arena exploded. He could practically hear the groans of despair from the coaches across the Atlantic in Russia, Romania and out over the Pacific in China. That routine was perfection.

"Ten! Ten! Ten!" a few over-enthusiastic fans started chanting in a far corner of the arena, but the judges weren't nearly ready to go that far as a 15.8 popped up on the board, a frustrated rippled went through the stands.

"Good work," he said, throwing an arm around her shoulder and drawing her into his side. Her arm slid around his waist and she squeezed back, smiling up at him.

She moved away as Kelly stepped up onto the podium and waited for the judges to acknowledge her. Then as Kelly began her routine, he felt her as his side again, her Rock tracksuit back on, arms folded over her chest as she talked through the routine again. "Aerial, to one arm flic-flac to layout step out," she said.

"Do you always do this?" Sasha asked, under her breath, his own arms crossed over his chest, not moving his eyes from Kelly's routine.

"If I'm already done," she said. "Full routines in competition fascinate me. It's so rare we actually get to see people compete. I like how it all adds up, how some people go for difficulty versus execution and if, in the end it looks like it's supposed to."

Sasha nodded, understanding that better than most. It was actually what drew him to coaching after his knee had given out for good. He wondered if she had any interest in coaching, after. "Switch split to back pike."

"Split to sissone," she continued for him, "watch that back foot." Kelly had a habit of flexing her back foot in her leap combinations.

"Side somi, shoulders aligned, good," he muttered as Kelly performed a skill that she loathed and always seemed to have trouble with in training, despite consistently hitting it in competition over the years.

"Full L turn to a full turn, too much hesitation," Payson picked it up. "Split half."

"Aerial cartwheel," he said, "And now here we go…" he trailed off.

"Back with a full right into the flic-flac," she said. "They'll give that connection to her."

"And finally, double flic-flac, two and a half twist...stick!" he added at the end.

"She used to do a triple when we were juniors," Payson said, applauding as Kelly saluted the judges with a smile. "I bet she still can."

"After Worlds," Sasha said and held out two fists for Kelly to bump as she came down off the podium and Payson followed suit. "Good job."

"Come on, Kaylie," Payson said as they waited for Kelly's score. And waited and waited some more.

Kaylie paced the podium, adding some chalk to the bottom of her feet, stretching out her arms and legs, talking through her own routine. Sasha was about to jump on the podium and join her just to take the edge off, but then finally Kelly's score popped up: 15.1

"Let's go Kaylie," Kelly said, now standing beside Payson.

"One and a half wolf turn," Payson mumbled. "Keep your core tight."

"Aerial round off," Sasha added, "Chest up, come on Kaylie." She wobbled a little, her chest down, throwing her off balance.

"She's okay. Steady now, Kaylie," Payson called out. "Aerial walk over to sissone," she continued under her breath. Sasha could feel Kelly staring at them and he turned to see her brows furrowed.

"Flic-flac and layout stepout," Sasha said, straightening his own shoulders as Kaylie's lost some form on the layout.

"There's something wrong with you two," Kelly muttered, but he noticed she didn't move away.

"Switch ring leap," Payson said, the last word a little wobbly as Kaylie wobbled again. "Switch split to split. Good connection."

"Front tuck," Sasha said, gritting his teeth, but she landed it solidly, standing up tall. Then Kaylie checked that she was at the end of the beam, tapping her foot against it before moving into a round off double pike to dismount.

Kaylie saluted and then hugged Lauren as she was coming up the stairs before letting out a breath of relief when she moved down them.

"Good job, Kayile," Payson said, giving her a hug and moving away, perhaps knowing that Sasha needed to give her corrections.

"Good fight," Sasha said, "Nothing was physically wrong, you just have to have more self-definition up there, Kaylie. Finish the skill with confidence and you won't wobble."

Kaylie nodded as her score flashed on the screen, a 14.4.

Sasha's eyes narrowed at the judges. Despite the wobbles it felt a little low, especially compared to the 14.2 Emily Kmetko had been gifted for simply not falling off.

Last up on beam was Lauren Tanner and Sasha was ready for a show.

"Let's go, Lo!" Kaylie called from where she was now taping her ankles for floor. Payson with no such worries stayed at his side.

As Lauren started her routine however, Payson did not begin her commentary. He looked to her with a brow quirked. "Only for teammates," she said with a shrug.

Lauren Tanner was truly fantastic on beam and Sasha was pretty sure between her, Kelly and Payson the World Championship Team Final beam rotation would be the best in the world. Their routines were difficult and performed with ease, artistry and athleticism. Nicolai would have paid good money to see them work over the four inches. He could practically see the old man in his mind's eye, fingers tapping along with the rhythm of the routine, perhaps pausing only when she landed the round off to layout full without a wobble, then all the way through to the dismount, a full-twisting double pike, her chest landing a bit low, but still utterly impressive nonetheless.

Payson let out a low breath and his hand, of it's own volition, landed on her shoulder, thumb moving over the back of her neck. He spoke softly to make sure none of the cameras could pick it up. "The routine is flashy, but her form is a little rough. The beam is yours."

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her bite her lip to keep a smile down. She went over to congratulate Lauren and happened to be standing beside her when the score posted, a 15.5, three tenths off Payson's score.

Sasha checked the scoreboard as the girls milled around, with just one competitor to go on floor.

1\. PARKER, Kelly - 44.8

2\. GRANGER, Courtney - 44.5

3\. TANNER, Lauren - 44.4

4\. CONWAY, Andrea - 44.1

4\. ATCHINSON, Beth - 44.1

6\. CRUZ, Kaylie - 43.3

7\. ECHOLLS, Tasha - 43.2

7\. KMETKO, Emily - 43.2

Sasha turned to see Lauren Tanner's eyes grow wide at her placement and right beside her, Kaylie's shoulders deflate. They were only three quarters of the way through the competition and Kaylie was nearly a point behind her friend and only a tenth of a point ahead of the girl who'd trained at the Y only a few months ago. If the result at the Invitational hadn't woken her up, maybe this would. It was too late to do anything about it now, but they had months until Worlds. They had time.

"Payson, how do you feel about your performances today?" the reporter asked.

"I was really happy with them in general," she said, trying to remember what Kelly had said about being captain-y, "but honestly, everyone was amazing today. Did you see Lauren on beam? And Andrea and Lindsey were awesome on bars. Courtney Granger is the best vaulter in the world and Kelly showed everyone why she's the defending champ. It's the one perk of not competing All Around, I get to watch these girls do world class gymnastics when I'd normally be focused on my own routines. I think we showed the world today that we're the team to beat in Rio."

The reporter seemed pleased with her answer, so she smiled and looked to another one. "Payson, obviously you were in the arena and not watching on TV, but social media exploded when the shots you and the other girls from Colorado aired on the broadcast. Twitter seems to think that Colorado should have it's own World Championship team!"

She laughed. "Maybe we'll ask Ms. Beals if we can do that at one of the training camps. It would be fun! It was really great being in the same rotation with them today. I think we make each other better."

"Are there any other upgrades we should expect from you going forward before Worlds?"

"Well I plan to add floor and vault back," she said, smirking at the reporter who laughed at her willful misinterpretation.

"Thanks everyone," one of the NGO's PR guys said, waving the reporters away. She slid off the stool they'd provided for her and hitched her bag over her shoulder, moving away from the media room and towards the locker room that had been set aside for them.

"I just had the best day of my life because I thought she was here watching me! I'm tied for second and now you're saying she wasn't even here! You said she was going to be here!" Lauren's voice echoed in the concrete hallway.

"You called her mother?" Steve Tanner shot out, his voice almost as high-pitched. Payson saw Summer, floundering.

"I thought I was helping," Summer said. "I thought Lauren would want to see her mother!"

Payson made herself as small as she could against the wall, making it to the locker room without being noticed and slipping in through the door.

"How's the ankle?" she asked, sitting beside Kelly who'd tweaked her weakened limb in the last rotation, though she'd pulled ahead of the pack with the highest floor score of the day. The ice pack was just as big as the day before's, but her face was twisting in a new kind of pain.

"Hurts," she said, shortly. "Trainer thinks a shot of cortisone will do the trick for tomorrow."

Payson nodded sympathetically. She'd had more than a few cortisone shots in the last year with her back. It was a miracle drug, but it didn't solve the problem, only masked it.

"Ladies," Sasha said, stepping into the room and moving over to them. "Kaylie," he asked, calling over the other girl who'd been sitting at one of the lockers staring into space. An 8th place finish on Day 1 would do that to someone who'd been expecting to medal all year. She'd even been outscored by Lauren on floor after their former teammate had, for perhaps the first time in her life, stuck every tumbling run like her feet were lined with glue. Then Emily had come out of nowhere with a floor routine as solid as Lauren's to move past Kaylie into 7th.

"Good job, today," he said. "We did what we came here to do, hit our routines. Take the rest of the night to rest. I know a competition isn't as physically draining as a normal day's work, but it's much harder mentally. We'll have a short training session before the men again tomorrow and then you'll have the rest of the day off. I believe the reception tonight is mandatory and Ms. Beals said you're expected no later than six."

Payson frowned. She'd been hoping to get in another swim tonight. It had felt good and she'd finally found her own suit, buried at the bottom of Becca's bag. The last thing she wanted to do was put on a dress and smile for people who she barely knew, not when she could get in a solid hour in the pool helping to get her endurance up for the impossibly difficult floor routine that needed to be ready for the next training camp. She'd talk to Sasha about it later. Maybe he'd give in after not letting her train vault and floor the day before. If worse came to worse, she'd try the big eyes again. He'd looked physically pained saying no the last time she'd done that.

"Okay hands in," he said, holding his own hand out. "On three, one, two, three."

"Rock on!"


	19. Chapter 18

Payson squinted at the length of gold sequins held aloft by MJ. "Business in the front, gold medal business," her agent said, nodding to the high neckline and long sleeves, before turning the dress around with a flick of her wrist, "party in the back." The back of the dress was almost entirely nonexistent, a deep v cutting into the fabric and came to a point at the small of her back. Wrinkling her nose, Payson shook her head. "Way too much sequins and not enough dress."

"Wow, awesome dress," Kelly said, emerging from the bathroom, icepack still bulging against her ankle.

MJ smiled. "The internet went insane over those sizzle pieces of you girls and you only have yourself to blame. You picked out that gold dress and now it's going to be your signature color."

Payson groaned, swiping both hands over her face. "I like purple better."

Humming, MJ nodded, "The color of royalty, we could play on that going forward, but tonight everyone is talking about that gold dress from the shoot in Colorado, so you're going to play into it, especially since those reps from…" she trailed off glancing at Kelly.

"Relax, my mom already ranted for hours about how you got Nike to sign Payson. Secret's out."

Payson snorted and took the dress from MJ. "Fine, but if you're going to be deciding what I wear you send me some options at least."

"Deal," MJ said, her victorious smile perhaps a sign that she had no intention of ever asking for Payson's opinion on clothes. "Wear your hair up in a bun. Show off those traps so they know just how good you'll look modeling their sports bras."

Eyes widening in panic, Payson looked up from the dress. "Their what?"

MJ just laughed as she made for the door. "I'll see you down there in a few, ladies."

Just as she left, Sheila swept in, eyeing MJ suspiciously until she was out the door and halfway down the hallway.

Payson gave the other woman a tight smile and went back to fidgeting in the dress she'd pulled on, unclipping her bra and slipping it out from under the soft silk fabric beneath the sequins. Thankfully the dress was fully lined in the front and she could get away with going braless. The back seam hit just below the tiny scar from her arthroscopic surgery

"Another gold dress," Sheila commented. "A little presumptuous, don't you think Miss Keeler, especially for someone not competing in the All Around?"

"Mom," Kelly warned and Payson focused on brushing out her hair and getting her ballet bun to sit at the top of her head while Sheila whispered quietly to Kelly about whatever she had planned for the dinner that night.

"Do you understand, Kelly?" Sheila finally said, her voice finally returning to normal.

"I understand," Kelly said, nodding and smiling brightly at her mom before Sheila swept from the room again.

"What was that about?" Payson asked, pinning the end of her hair underneath the bun into place.

"My mom likes to think she knows enough about gymnastics to give me tips."

Payson rolled her eyes, knowing how lucky she was that her parents supported her gymnastics, but stayed as far away as they could from the nitty gritty details.

"Okay, how do I look?" she asked, turning over her shoulder and bending one knee to strike a pose that felt like it would work on a red carpet.

Kelly, standing on one leg like a flamingo as she pulled on her gossamer-like tangerine and white said, "Awesome. Nicky Russo'll be drooling all over himself as soon as he sees you."

Payson groaned. "I'm still so annoyed at myself. That was my first kiss and it was so crappy."

"Flirt with Austin a little tonight and I'm sure he'd be more than happy to make up for it."

Raising an eyebrow, Payson then narrowed her eyes. "You bring up Austin Tucker a lot for someone who isn't interested in him, at all." Kelly flushed a little bit and Payson smiled. Maybe she wasn't as bad at this girl talk thing as she thought.

"Says the girl who randomly kissed some guy she wasn't interested in because she felt bad for him. Sorry, PK, I won't be taking dating advice from you anytime soon."

"Who said anything about dating? I just said you talked about him a lot." Kelly flushed more, but Payson let her off the hook. "Are you ready? The sooner we get down there the sooner we can leave."

"The party hasn't even started yet. We can't leave and we can't get there right when it starts either. Let's see what MJ was talking about online."

Kelly started swiping through her phone and Payson shook her head. "I don't want to know."

Payson groaned as Kelly read yet another quote from the anonymous horde online who'd watch their first day of competition. It was five minutes after six and she'd finally convinced Kelly to leave the room, but they'd only made it down the hallway before Kelly had begun again.

"Ladies," a voice interrupted them, the lilt of his English accent making Payson's shoulders relax instantly.

"Hi Sasha," she said, smiling up at him as he exited his own room and moved towards them where they were waiting for the elevator.

His face split into a smile as wide as wide as her own and his eyes twinkled at her before he looked to Kelly. "You both look lovely, though heels, Kelly, really?"

The reigning National Champion shrugged, admiring her white peep-toe pumps. "They went with the dress."

The elevator dinged at its arrival and Payson turned, waiting for the doors to open. As she did, Sasha let out a harsh cough. She looked up as he followed them into the car with concern. "You okay?" she asked.

He nodded, a little red in the face as he cleared his throat. "Fine," he said, pulling at the collar of his shirt and flicking the top button undone.

Payson looked to Kelly who just shrugged and pushed the button for the lobby.

Sasha made sure to position himself at the front of the elevator, but even that didn't help as the mirrored surface of the doors reflected against the mirror on the far wall giving him a spectacular view of the back of Payson's dress, or, perhaps more appropriately, lack of dress.

The universe was punishing him, he was sure of it. He had many sins in his life to atone for, but he didn't know which one had pushed him over the top to make his body go haywire over his gymnast. Control had never been his strong suit, particularly when it came to women, but he'd never felt anything quite like this before and certainly not for someone so wholly unavailable.

The elevator dinged as they reached the lobby and upon the doors opening, a small crowd of fans gasped and shrieked in unison as they saw who was getting off the elevator. Sasha put himself between the surging group of teenaged girls and his gymnasts.

"It's fine," Payson muttered. "There aren't that many of them."

The party was being held at the restaurant adjacent to the lobby and they were only a few feet away from escape if it became necessary, so Sasha took a step to the side as Payson and Kelly moved forward to sign programs, pictures and snap selfies with their fans, many of whom didn't look much younger than them and some quite a bit older.

He kept his mouth set into a firm line, hoping it was enough to prevent anyone asking for a picture with him.

"I can't believe you guys train together now," one of the fans gushed. "Everyone thought you hated each other."

"Can't believe everything you hear," Kelly said, through a smile as the fan snapped a selfie between the both of them.

A slightly over-aggressive mother made her way to the front of the group, pushing her tiny daughter in front of her. "She just loves you girls," the woman said, though Sasha was pretty sure a girl as young as the one he was looking at had no idea who Payson or Kelly were. "Will you take a picture with us?"

Payson smiled tightly, clearly understanding that this was more about the mother than the daughter, but held out her arms for the little girl who stepped into them without protest and settled on Payson hip as she lifted her up.

"Would you mind?" the woman asked, shoving her phone at Sasha.

"Not at all," he mumbled and snapped a picture of all four of them. He was sure this was going to end up on some sort of Facebook or Twitter account likely full of this woman, her kid and celebrities she guilted into taking a picture.

A few more pictures and Sasha checked his watch. It was now closer to the bottom of the hour than the top. "Ladies, we should…" he trailed off, stepping up beside Payson as she finished singing one last scrap of paper. Kelly snapped one final selfie and then shrugged.

"Sorry guys, when Coach says we've gotta go…" she trailed off.

He was more than happy to take the blame for cutting the impromptu meet and greet short. As he began to lead them away through the small space the gathered crowd had left between the elevator bay and the restaurant entrance, his hand fell to the center of Payson's back, every calloused inch of his skin sliding against the satin of hers.

At her sharp intake of breath and her eyes flying to his wide in an emotion he couldn't readily identify, he drew his hand away, stretching his fingers out at the loss of contact and then clenching them into a fist. They passed through the archway of the restaurant, one of the hotel staff letting them through the velvet robe keeping other patrons away for the evening. The elite of the United States gymnastics world was dressed in their finest, milling around a restaurant they normally wouldn't be caught dead in to honor Ray Keegan, who'd finally retired after thirty years in the sport coaching some of the best gymnasts to go through the US's program, though he hadn't had a champion in a long while, not since Jordan Randall had dropped off the elite radar after a meltdown at Nationals in 2009.

Sasha kept his mind busy thinking about Jordan Randall and her triple back dismount on bars while Payson was still walking beside him, the scent of whatever shampoo and perfume she wore invaded his senses. He tried not to think how she'd clearly been shocked by his touch and yet she hadn't moved away from him, not then and not now.

"God, this decor is tacky. I get that it's Nationals, but the room is teal and purple. Who thought those color combinations were a good idea? There's our table," Kelly said, moving ahead of them towards a large round table near the front of the room, just off the dais where Marty was already sitting with Lauren, Emily and Kaylie, along with Nicky and Carter. A sign holder held a small card that read: Team Colorado. Apparently the NGO was buying into its own press.

He needed a minute, or maybe ten or fifteen, away, just out of her presence to clear the fog in his head.

There was a DJ spinning in the corner and as he made eye contact with Marty from across the table, he lifted a hand up into a drinking motion. His old friend nodded and stood quickly, gesturing towards the far corner of the room where there was, blessedly, a bar.

"You look like you're about to explode. Did Ellen Beals try to hit on your or something?"

Sasha snorted, as they moved up to the bar and shook his head. "Need something to clear my head." He nodded to the bartender. "Jim Beam, neat"

Marty pointed back and forth between them, indicating to the bartender that he'd like the same. "Bourbon, huh? So who is she?"

Rolling his eyes and stretching his neck back and forth, Sasha said, "I forgot how much I hated this. The not-coaching part of coaching."

"Not like Romania, huh? Everyone bowing to your whims…" Marty trailed off.

"And expecting nothing less than gold," Sasha finished for him, "but high expectations are a cakewalk compared to the politics of all this. And the parents, Christ, the parents."

"Smart of you to make Kim Keeler the gym manager, though I don't know how you did it and I don't know how you convinced Payson to have that surgery. I've never seen a more single minded athlete, except maybe you."

Sasha took up the tumbler of whiskey and inhaled the scent for a moment before downing it in one gulp. Payson was very much like him, aside from the self-destructive streak his dysfunctional family had so lovingly cultivated in his youth. "She trusts me. Maybe it was that fourth gold medal that put me over the top." As the warmth settled into his stomach, he managed the joke with a half smile.

Marty laughed and raised his glass before take a sip. "Touché."

Shoulders down, core tight, leg up, toe pointed, once around and then again, keep that leg up and set. Payson knew her eyes were open, but instead of seeing Carter and Nicky across the large round table, her mind had formed a visual of the arena, specifically the balance beam atop the raised podium. Arms up, chin lifted and then flic-flac, flic-flac, layout, keeping it floaty, landing with her chest up, back straight….Sasha's hand on her back.

And with that thought her focus was broken, the skin over her spine tingling with residual awareness of the unexpected touch. It shouldn't have mattered at all. He touched her all the time in the gym, fixing her body position or giving her shoulder an encouraging squeeze. She'd always felt something in those moments, but nothing quite like the electrical current that ran from the press of his rough fingertips across the bare skin of her back. Maybe it was just because she wasn't used to being touched there.

"Oh my God, that's amazing," Lauren's voice cut into her thoughts, drawing her back into the present. "Can you believe it Payson?"

She shook her head. "Believe what?"

"About Kaylie and Carter."

"Yeah, it's awesome," Payson answered, knowing her contribution wasn't necessary.

"I mean I thought there was something between you guys when I was at the Rock, but I'm so happy for you, Kaylie," Lauren gushed. "Did he ask you out when you guys got here?"

"They've been together for months, Tanner," Kelly put in, rolling her eyes.

"Wait, months?" Lauren asked.

"I wanted to tell you, Lo, we both did, but we didn't tell anyone at first."

"She knew," Lauren snarled waving a hand towards Kelly.

Kelly actually bit her lip in contrition, an expression that Payson hadn't ever seen on her face before.

"We were training together and Payson found out and it was…"

"We trained together for years," Lauren shot back, pushing away from the table and stomping off.

"Lauren, wait!" Kaylie called, jumping up from her chair and following the blonde towards the bathrooms.

Payson sighed and shot a look at Kelly who grimaced. "I actually didn't mean to do that," she said.

"Do what?" Leo Cruz said, sliding into the seat beside her. Families hadn't been invited to the dinner so it was anyone's guess how he'd gotten in.

"Apparently let it slip to Lauren that Kaylie's been seeing Carter for months," Kelly said, obviously not noticing as Payson started to frantically shake her head.

Leo's eyes grew wide. "Carter's been what?"

Carter's head shot up from the other side of the table, eyes wide as Leo glared at him. "Mophead, we need to talk, now," Leo said, the smoothness of his entrance totally shot to hell as he stood and knocked his own chair back, circling the table and manhandling his friend towards the exit.

"Seriously, did no one but us know about this?" Kelly asked, shoulders slumping.

"Know about what?" Austin Tucker said, tossing himself into the chair between them.

"Nothing," Payson and Kelly said together.

"Okay, clearly I missed the joke," he said and he didn't push it. "So you two want to get out of here and hit up a real party? Friend of mine has a gig at a bar in Fenway."

For half a second, Payson actually considered it. They only had a light training session the following day in the afternoon, but then when she saw Kelly's face light up with a smile, she just shook her head. "You guys go. MJ wants me to hang around here and talk to some sponsors."

"You sure?" Kelly asked, grabbing her bag from the table and standing, wincing just a bit as her weight fell to her ankle in her heels.

"Are you sure?" Austin asked with a frown. "We could just chill, Parker, watch a movie…" he trailed off.

"Yeah?" she asked and Payson slid from her chair, leaving them to it. Glancing around the room she saw MJ chatting with the reps she'd met with from Nike the other day, but MJ had given her strict instructions to let her bring them over and not to join them while she hammered out the details of the deal. Her eyes landed on Kaylie and Lauren who seemed to have made up and were giggling in the corner of the room and then finally on Sasha who was with Marty at the bar. She briefly caught the backs of Kelly and Austin as they tried to leave the room, as surreptitiously as the two defending National and World Champions could.

Her phone buzzed to life in her small clutch and she dug it out just as it started to erupt with dozens of alerts. She'd been tagged in a Twitter pic from an account she didn't recognize, but whatever the pictures was, it had the entirety of the Gymternet in an uproar as she saw the number on her notifications rise steadily. Whatever it was, it was either mind-blowingly amazing or spectacularly terrible.

She flicked her thumb across the alert and opened her Twitter app, sighing heavily as a grainy, but clear enough to be totally damning picture of Marty Walsh and Ronnie Cruz entwined on the doorstep of Marty's apartment popped up on her phone.

"Spectacularly terrible it is," she said as the room around her began to buzz, everyone staring at their phones. Her eyes darted over to the bar and she raced over as quickly as her high heels would allow, moving straight to Sasha's side. "You need to get him out of here."

"What?" Sasha asked, looking to Marty who had his drink half raised to his mouth.

She shoved her phone out for them both to look and realization followed by horror bloomed across both of their faces. "You need to get him out of here, now," she said, but it was too late. A shoulder jostled her out of the way, knocking her into Sasha who caught her easily around the waist. She braced herself against his chest just as she saw a fist flying out and connecting with Marty's face.

"You son of a bitch," Leo Cruz spat out as Marty bounced against the edge of the bar and stumbled back towards the young man who hit him.

Sasha set Payson on her feet and quickly got behind Leo, strong arms holding him back by the shoulders. "You got your shot in, kid. Enough."

Leo struggled against him, but finally Kaylie's voice rang out, "Stop it!"

Marty, an eye tightly shut and already beginning to swell, managed to stand up right. "Kaylie," he began, his voice imploring, but what he wanted Payson didn't know.

Kaylie stood there for a moment, shaking, but then she spun and fled the room, Lauren right behind her and finally Leo shook loose from Sasha and followed his sister.

Turning and looking at Sasha again, she repeated herself. "You need to get him out of here."

Sasha looked down at her and nodded quickly. "Let's go," he said to Marty, every eye in the room following them as they moved to the exit.

Inhaling deeply and then letting out her breath slowly, Payson tried to calm herself. She felt a presence hovering near her shoulder and turned to see Emily Kmetko shifting awkwardly back and forth and biting her lip.

"Come on. Let's go. This party is a disaster and we don't need another ounce of drama messing with our focus," Payson said, marching to the exit, Emily right by her side. The elevator bay was blessedly empty when they arrived, but when the doors opened Ellen Beals stood there in a little black dress, hair blown out and looking so different in something other than her usual sweatsuit Payson barely recognized her.

"Girls, you both look lovely tonight. Are you ready for the party?" she asked, smiling widely at them and Payson felt her heart sink as Beals gestured for them to lead her back into the room with a smile. It was going to be a long night.


	20. Chapter 19

Payson chalked her hands thoroughly, relishing the feel of her calloused palms against the leather of her grips. It wasn't so long ago that competing at these National Championship was up in the air and despite not being able to compete for the All Around title she'd dreamed of, she was leading on both bars and beam and getting in a good training was important for the final day of competition tomorrow. However, looking across the chalk bowl, she wondered if that were possible for any of the girls in the Team Colorado rotation.

Marty's absence had been conspicuous that morning as they'd gathered in the lobby and then moved on the bus to the arena. Despite being super curious the blankness in Kaylie's eyes had kept her from asking.

"Ladies," Sasha called from the well beside the uneven bars podium and they all turned to see him nodding towards Ellen Beals who was approaching from the corner of the arena, Payson squinted at the woman walking beside her, long dark hair worn half up, half down. There was something familiar about her.

The high pitched squeal that escaped from Lauren who stood just beside her filled in the blanks. Darby Conrad, two time Olympian, silver medalist and the NGO's floor coach from Beijing. Also, Lauren Tanner's "big sister" from NGO camp.

Leaping down from the podium, Lauren jogged up to Darby and proceeded to clap hands and dance to what she vaguely remembered as their secret handshake from all those years ago.

Beals cleared her throat when they were finished and smiled indulgently at them before waving down the other girls. "Lauren, obviously you two have already met, but Emily, I'd like to introduce you to Darby Conrad. The NGO is looking into some concerning information about Marty Walsh and it's been decided that Darby will be your interim coach on the floor for Day 2."

"What's happening with Marty?" Emily asked, and Payson put her hand on the other girl's shoulder in solidarity.

"The NGO has a character clause in its contract with National Team coaches. If he's found to have violated it…" Beals trailed off, her meaning clear.

"Good," Kaylie ground out and turned away, lifting herself back up onto the podium. Sasha followed to spot her through her bar warm-up. Beals raised an eyebrow.

"Have you had any luck figuring out who leaked that photo?" Emily asked. Payson didn't blame her for her uneasiness. Marty was her coach and after the upheaval of moving from the Rock to Denver, none of them knew what would happen if Marty was suspended long term.

"Not yet," Beals said, briskly, clearly not wanting to address it. The NGO was notorious for wanting to maintain a squeaky-clean image and this controversy pushed beyond the barriers of the gym world thanks to Ronnie's high-profile and Marty's Olympic success back in the day. "Try not to worry about it. We're looking into it and we'll update everyone in regards to his status as soon as possible." With that she turned and moved away from them towards the rest of the National Committee which had congregated in the center of the arena.

Emily let out a shaky breath and Payson squeezed her shoulder. "It'll be okay. We've seen your routines and so has Sasha, we can…"

"Emily!" Darby squealed, finally leaving Lauren's side. "I'm so excited to work with you."

"Oh," Emily said, as Darby reached out and hugged her. "Um, you..you know who I am?"

"Of course I do!" Darby said, bouncing as she pulled away. "I watched the livestream of the Rock Invitational and obviously the competition yesterday. You've come such a long way in a short time and Payson, it's so good to see you!"

"Oh God," Payson said, as she too was engulfed into a hug.

Darby pulled back, smiling wide. "You know I've worshiped you forever. Courtney and I fought over you at your first junior national camp, but it all worked out in the end two years later when Lolo showed up!"

Payson had never been more grateful for Courtney Kupets in her life and would make sure to thank her former camp big sister when she saw her again.

"Lolo?" Emily muttered.

"Please, those two were insufferable," Kelly mumbled as Darby moved back toward Lauren, giggles erupting as they grabbed each other's hands, bouncing together a bit. "Conrad was a good gymnast, though, I'll give her that."

"She was," Payson agreed. "I'm sure it'll be fine and we're here to help if you need anything."

"Thanks," Emily said.

The klaxon sounded in the arena and they moved up to the bars again.

"Yay," Darby squeaked and pushed up onto the podium with Lauren right behind her. "I am so stoked to be here!"

Payson not being able to keep an incredulous half smile off her face, chalked her hands again and nodded to Sasha who quirked a grin at her and then nodded back. After the insanity of the night before, everything from the touch of his hand to her back all the way to Leo Cruz leveling Marty with a punch, she had to put it all away and begin again and with a deep breath, Payson shoved it all to the side in her mind and focused.

"You know when I invited you to stay in my room, this isn't what I was imagining," Kelly muttered as Payson held open the door for room service while Kelly signed the receipt.

"Kaylie needs us and Lauren is her best friend and I wasn't exactly going to leave Emily out after she just lost her coach," Payson rationalized. Training had been a complete disaster for Kaylie. She'd fallen over and over again on every apparatus. Her routines weren't the hardest in the world, but consistency was her ticket onto the National Team and maybe to Worlds and Payson wasn't just going to standby while drama they had no control over got the best of one of her friends.

Kelly rolled her eyes, as she closed the door behind the hotel worker. "Having teammates sucks."

"Yeah, yeah," Payson said. A month ago she would have just thought that Kelly was being a bitch, but she was able to tell the difference now between actual animosity and the act she put on around the other girls.

Pushing the cart of fruit platters and salads into the room, Lauren leapt off of Payson's bed where she'd been sitting with Kaylie. "Finally, I'm starving."

"You're welcome," Kelly said and Lauren flashed her a sarcastic smile through a mouth full of strawberry.

"My mom went home," Kaylie said, out of nowhere, the first words she'd spoken since they got back to the room. "Woke up this morning and she was gone."

"She left without saying goodbye?" Payson asked, totally stunned. Ronnie Cruz was a lot of things, but she was definitely a good mom.

Kaylie shrugged. "She called from the airport. Said she was sorry and that she didn't want to be a distraction."

"Did your dad say anything?" Lauren asked, carefully.

"No," Kaylie said, throwing her hands up into the air. "He just totally pretended like nothing happened. Like TMZ isn't camping out in the lobby of the hotel and I don't even know what to do. I kept it a secret from him and how the hell am I supposed to go out there tomorrow like none of that is happening?" Her voice cracked and her anger faded from her face as her eyes filled with tears.

Payson tamped down the you have to, that wanted to bubble out of her throat as Lauren came forward and pulled Kaylie into a hug.

"I don't know what to do," Kaylie managed through her sobs. Moving in, Payson put her arms around the two girls who'd taken her in as an awkward fourteen year old and made her part of their team.

"It's going to be okay," Lauren said.

"We promise," Payson added, catching her former teammate's eye and they led Kaylie over to the bed to sit down.

"You can't promise that," Kaylie said, taking the tissue box Emily held out for her.

Payson stood up. "Sure we can, at least while we're in Boston. We have Leon and his security team to keep the press and the fans away. We have Sasha and Darby to coach us tomorrow. And we have gymnastics to focus on." She glanced at the clock. It was just after seven. "And this time tomorrow we'll be out on the floor and nothing else matters except hitting our routines and making the National team."

"And then going to Worlds together and then the Olympics together," Lauren said.

"The five of us?" Kelly joked, but Emily perked up at that.

"Why not?" Emily asked. "We have two years until London. Why not the five of us?"

"Team Colorado against the World," Payson joked and it actually got a smile out of Kaylie.

Then the smile faded as she shook her head. "I have to be perfect to medal tomorrow."

"Don't think about that," Kelly said and the other girls looked up at her in shock. "Seriously. Don't think about that. You just have to go out and do your routines, nothing more, nothing less."

"Easy for you to say. You're National Champion and you're gonna be National Champion again after tomorrow."

Kelly shrugged. "Only because Payson's not competing. At least that's what my mom was nice enough to inform me of yesterday."

"Kelly…" Payson trailed off, somehow despite herself - and the truth - wanting to contradict her.

"No, it's fine, Keeler, that's not why I'm...look our parents...they're our parents. This isn't their dream. It's ours and we can't let them dictate how we live that dream. Your mom did the nasty with Marty and your dad is in total denial. My mom looks at me and sees someone is only going to win tomorrow because Nationals aren't like two weeks from now when Payson's ready. Who cares? That's on them, not on us."

"It's not that easy," Kaylie protested.

"Yeah, it is," Lauren cut in. "It is. My mom was supposed to come see me and…"

"Your mom is doing relief work in Darfur, Lo, not…"

"No, she's not. I lied. My mom isn't a relief worker. She's a drug addict."

"What?" Payson asked, doing a double take.

"My mom left me and my dad when I was 8 because she's an addict. Summer invited her to come watch me and she said she would, but then she bailed just like she always does and I just thought screw her, you know? I got here without her and I'm going to medal tomorrow without her. And if your mom is gonna just run away and your dad is going to check out on you, then you just have to do it, for you."

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I agree with Lauren," Emily said. "I know I'm just the girl that Marty found at the Y, but there were so many times that I just wanted to give up because it got too hard, but then I wouldn't be here with you guys, having so much fun," she joked, and miraculously, Kaylie smiled again. "The point is, it's like Lauren said, you can't do it for anyone else except yourself."

"And your teammates," Payson said. "I know this Team Colorado thing is so ridiculous, but look at us. We're not just friends…"

"Tanner and I so are not friends," Kelly cut in and Lauren flipped her off, one arm still around Kaylie's shoulders.

"Exactly," Payson said, rolling her eyes. "You're not, but we're teammates. No one else understands what we go through, not even our parents and if we're going to do this, really do this, then we need each other more than anyone else, and all of us will be out there tomorrow by ourselves unless we stick together."

"Alright, let's go, Carter," Sasha said, clapping his hands together as his rings specialist held in the iron cross for one...two...three full seconds, just to impress the judges and emphasize his control.

"Come on, Carter!" Nicky cheered from beside him hands chalked and ready to go.

The rest of the guys in the rotation clapped and called out to Carter as he swung out of the cross once, twice into his dismount and landing with his chest down a bit and a small hop.

"Nice job," Sasha said, applauding and high-fiving his mop-headed athlete as he came down from the podium. Still waiting for the score, Sasha followed Nicky up the stairs to lift him onto the rings when the judges were ready.

His eyes moved to the vault and he watched Austin Tucker on his final rotation of the day. Vault wasn't his strongest event, as evidenced by the 5.8 d-score flashed on the screen beside him. He flew down towards the vault in a measured run, dove headfirst at the table, handspring off of it, launching himself into the air and twisting his body around just once, his 6'1" frame barely getting around before his feet hit the ground. He needed more power, more block, more everything if he wanted to contend for another Olympic Gold in London.

The score on Carter's rings routine flashed up - a 15.25 - just as Austin's did for vault, a 14.9. Sasha did the math in his head quickly and nodded to Nicky. Even with Austin's natural weakness on vault, it wasn't going to be close between them, though it was important for Nicky to finish strong.

"You ready, Russo?" Sasha asked, turning the young man who was about to become the second best gymnast in his country and his gym.

At Nicky's nod, Sasha lifted him up to the rings and held him steady as he found his grips on the rings. He watched with a practiced eye as Russo swung through his routine, holding his skills for required amount of time, keeping a strong grip on the rings, holding firm during the strength elements. Nicky was a good gymnast, but he could be great if he'd just take a risk here and there, but that was almost impossible to teach, willingness. Maybe having Austin Tucker around every day would be good for the - Sasha refused to let himself think the words until his feet hit the mat with a resounding thwack and he saluted the judges - silver medalist.

"And now the Men's All Around Medalists!" the announcer called through the broadcast stream on Kelly's computer.

"In sixth place All Around from Rocky Mountain Gymnastics Training Center, Carter Anderson," the announcer called and all the girls turned to Kaylie, sitting at the edge of Payson's bed with a smile.

"Looks like Carter is gonna make the National Team this year, Kaylie! You two could be like Mr. and Mrs. USA Gymnastics," Lauren teased from the floor between the beds.

Payson looked up from lounging back against the pillows of her own bed and raised her eyebrow at Kelly. She hadn't had a chance to tease the other girl about leaving the party the night before with Austin as much as she'd like even though Kelly insisted that nothing had happened beyond them watching a movie and subsequently falling asleep in Austin's bed long before the credits rolled.

Kelly flushed, but Payson kept her mouth shut. She couldn't quite believe it, but Kelly had somehow become one of her closest friends in the last few months, but she was pretty sure the other girl didn't really do friendship as such and she didn't want to alienate her with too much teasing too soon.

Refocusing on the broadcast, they were up to Nicky Russo, "With the silver medal, from the Rocky Mountain Gymnastics Training Center, Nicholas Russo!"

"There's your man, Pay!" Kaylie said and Payson shook her head, smiling.

Then Lauren, of course, had to cut in. "He must be a really terrible kisser if you dumped him after just one try. I mean you're like the queen of practice, you could have given the guy a chance to perfect his technique."

"Nicky isn't a terrible kisser," Payson said, with a toss of her head. "The kissing was fine. He's just not who I want to be kissing and I'm not wasting my time, especially before the Olympics, on some guy who I'm not all that into and really, it probably wouldn't last anyway. Boys are just a total distraction."

"Thanks, Pay," Kaylie said, but Payson could tell she was feeling better from the lack of bite in her tone.

Payson twisted her mouth into a small grin. "You know I love and support you Kaylie, but I stand by my opinion."

"And you're entitled to it," Kaylie said back with a grin of her own.

"And the gold medalist and 2010 National All Around Champion, Austin Tucker!"

"I'm shocked he's not wearing his sunglasses on the podium," Kaylie joked.

"Austin Tucker, undercover," Emily cracked and the rest of them laughed.

"I can't believe he's going to be training with us," Kaylie said. "Carter's really excited about it. They're pretty good friends."

"It'll be pretty cool to have a legit Olympic gold medalist at the Rock," Payson agreed as they watched the men leave the floor with their medals, Nicky and Carter moving over to Sasha to get pulled into a quick hug with a firm pat on the back. Pulling out her phone, she opened twitter and put together a quick congrats tweet to Carter, Nicky and Austin. Then biting her lip she brought up her text messages, shooting off a quick one to Sasha.

Can we talk?

On my way back to the hotel. 15 minutes.

Her stomach flipped and her heart rate picked up just a touch as the minutes ticked by, the girls around her chatting about the men's results.

"I forgot," she said when enough time had finally passed. "I promised my mom I'd stop by her room before I went to sleep tonight. I'll be right back."

She was out the door when her mind caught up with her words. Why had she lied? Maybe because it was coming on nine o'clock and she was in her pajamas and headed towards the room of a man twelve years older than her. Her coach. He was her coach. There shouldn't be any problem going to see him, no matter what time. She just wanted to talk about tomorrow and not about what it had felt like to have his hand on the bare skin of her back. Or maybe she did and that's why they needed to talk.

Payson sighed heavily as she stopped in front of Sasha's door and knocked.

"Payson," he said, smiling tightly at her and opened the door wider to allow her in. "I..ah…" he hesitated before sliding the security lock at the top of the door between it and the jam, leaving the door open a crack.

"Yeah," she said, responding to his hesitation and the clear line he'd drawn by propping the door open. "I think maybe…"

"I'm sorry," he cut in, but then shook his head, running a hand over his hair in frustration. "I mean...I don't…"

"I'm not sure if I've ever seen you speechless," she marveled.

"It only seems to happen around you. That time you drank that bloody beer right in front of me, for one," he said, laughing, the tension sliding away from them.

Payson propped herself on the edge of his dresser, leaning back and taking a deep breath. "I think maybe...are we okay?"

Sasha sat down on the edge of his bed, just across from her. "Did I ever tell you about my coach?"

"Your dad?" she asked, wrinkling her nose. What did his dad have anything to do with this?

"No, ah - that didn't work out so well," he said, his eyes suddenly far away and she tilted her head in confusion. Dmitri Belov was legendary, but she'd never met the man herself.

"He wasn't a good coach?"

"He was, in some ways, the best."

"Then what happened?"

"He'll never forgive me for winning Olympic gold for England and not Romania."

Payson let that thought settle into her stomach uncomfortably before pushing off the dresser and moving to sit beside him. She couldn't imagine a father holding something like that against his son. "I'm sorry," she said.

"It was a long time ago," he said, turning towards her, making the mattress shift beneath them and she was suddenly aware of how this might look to someone walking into the room. "I meant the coach I replaced him with who became the most important person in my life. Nicolai Kaboyi."

"Nicolai the Great," she said. She didn't just love to do gymnastics, she loved everything about it, including its history. Nicolai had coached Sasha in Sydney, adding three gold medals to his first from Atlanta.

"He was," Sasha said, smiling, that far away look returning. "And that relationship was based on trust and loyalty and even…" he trailed off, shaking his head.

"Even what?"

"It doesn't matter. I just want you to understand something about me, about us, Payson. I'm here for you. I will be by your side and we will get to the Olympics together and I promise that I won't let anything or anyone get in the way of that."

Payson blinked, wondering if he was still worried about that completely embarrassing kiss he'd witnessed. "I told you, Sasha. I'm not interested in Nicky."

"I'm not talking about Nicky," he interrupted her quickly. "I just, I needed you to know that. Between a coach and an athlete, it's like no other relationship I know. It is intense and intimate and sometimes confusing and bloody complicated."

"Yeah," she agreed, looking down at his hand resting on the mattress beside her, fingers pressing into the floral bedspread. "That's why I wanted to talk. The other night at the party, well before it actually, I...when you said complicated, I think maybe our relationship was complicated for a minute there and maybe it is still and I think that's...okay, as long as we..." she didn't know what to say, so instead she lifted her hand and laid it on top of his, this time expecting that same surge of heat and electricity that bloomed as soon as she touched him. She squeezed his hand and the the heat faded slowly into a soft warmth. "I'm really happy you're my coach, Sasha. I've never had this kind of connection with someone before, not my coaches in Minnesota, not with Marty and I don't want to do anything to jeopardize that."

"You couldn't," he said, with a soft huff, "but I…"

"You couldn't either," she said. "I know you wouldn't and as long as we're on the same page then I think we'll be okay." She found as she said the words, she actually believed them.

Sasha pulled his hand away from her and standing. For just a moment her hand still tingled with the warmth, but then slowly it faded. "We will. You will. You'll be Olympic champion. I promise. Do you trust me?" he asked, holding his hand out to her again.

She took it without hesitation and stood, that warmth returning. "I trust you and as for the rest of it," she said, glad that even though they'd talked around it, whatever it was that was passing between them was out in the open.

"It doesn't matter," he said, with a mock begrudging roll of his eyes, releasing her hand, "as long as we, God save us, talk about it."

"Like we just did...kind of?" she asked with a laugh.

He laughed too, a full throated bark from deep in his chest and it made Payson smile. "Yeah, like we just did, kind of. Go, get some rest. Long day tomorrow. I believe there are two gold medals waiting with your name of them."

With a deep breath, she nodded and took a step towards him, closing the distance quickly and wrapping her arms around his neck, the same way she would had she completed a successful routine. For a split second, she felt his hesitation, before one strong arm wrapped around her waist and his other hand cradled the back of her neck lightly, holding her for just a moment, before they both stepped back. The heat and electricity was still there, but it was different, like a pot set to keep warm on the back burner of a stove.

"Good night," Sasha said, as he held the door open for her and she slipped out into the hallway, unable to keep the smile off her face. She left that room knowing she'd learned something important, something she was sure many women, especially young women didn't understand. She'd meant what she said earlier, boys were a huge distraction, but a man, a real man? He'd make sure that he wasn't.


	21. Chapter 20

The lobby buzzed with activity, little girls and their parents hovering awkwardly hoping for a brush with fame, other coaches standing together chatting, members of the NGO dressed as if they were headed to the most important of board meetings standing like statues, faces masks of stoicism. Several members of the press were still milling around hoping for a quick shot of Kaylie Cruz thanks to the circus her family situation had become in the last day and a half. Sasha'd been up with the sun and had run himself ragged all morning trying to burn off the energy that coursed through him on the day of competition. After a shower and a quick lunch he had carved out a small corner near the elevators and spent the morning running through the scores from day one and the rotation orders for day two. He never felt more useless than on competition days. The only thing he could do was remain calm for his girls and watch, helplessly as everything they'd worked on either came to fruition or went up in smoke.

Staring at the lineup one more time, he took a deep breath and then folded the sheet into quarters and pocketed it for reference later. Payson was in position to win both the bars and beam titles and her training performances had given the world just a hint of what was in store for them in Rio. Kelly was looking strong, despite her ankle and if she managed her pain she'd be crowned the All Around champion in just a few hours. Kaylie was his real concern, but she'd always been a consistent performer, yesterday's training notwithstanding. The girls would be down soon.

"It's still a little strange you know? Seeing you with that five o'clock shadow and a jacket that says coach on it."

He looked up to see MJ sitting in a chair across from him, legs crossed at the knee, her eyes shrewd as she studied him. Shrugging, he blew out a breath slowly. "If it's strange for you, imagine how odd it is for me."

MJ raised an eyebrow. "Even after all this time? Olympic gold with the Romanian women's team, you still want to be out there?"

"I'll be ninety-five on my death bed and still want to be out there."

Sniffing and shaking her head, MJ said, "You're just like her," they both knew who she meant, "and yet you held her back this week. Why?"

He didn't have to explain himself to MJ, but the unease with his own decision to keep Payson from the all-around this week had gnawed at his gut long enough to prompt a response. "Could she have competed on vault and floor? Maybe. But it wasn't the goal to peak here and now. Showing the world watered down routines for the sake of a couple of meaningless medals two years out from London isn't why I moved all the way to Colorado to coach her."

"Would have made my job selling her a touch easier. Some other girl is about to be National Champion and you know the market. They don't understand gymnastics."

Sasha barked out a laugh and stood as he saw Leon's head emerge from the elevator bay, knowing the girls would be right behind the security guard. "Will you have any trouble selling World Champion?"

"That I can do," she said, but he was already walking away as his girls emerged through the crowd, not a hair out of place, makeup applied to perfection, the red and purple of the Rock's warmups not quite blending with the navy and red of Denver Elite's, but the girls walked in a line, Payson leading the way with her head held high. Something in his chest tightened thinking about their conversation the night before, half content, half unease and yet he wouldn't change a thing. Kelly Parker was right behind her, then Kaylie, keeping her head down as the press began to surge forward with Lauren Tanner only inches away and Emily Kmetko bringing up the rear. He fell into step beside her and out of the corner of his eye saw Darby Conrad fall in at the back of the line. Today they were all a team.

The klaxon sounded and the arena hummed with excitement just before the start of the first routine.

"Now on uneven bars for the Rocky Mountain Gymnastics Training Center, Payson Keeler!" the announced called and the hum erupted into thousands of high pitched screams of little gymnastics fans all over the arena before falling almost silent again as the judges gave her the green flag.

"Here we go, Payson," Darby called from beside him and the other girls joined in, still wrapping their wrists and tightening their grips.

Sasha's eyes met hers and he nodded. She nodded back just before she stepped in between the bars and saluted the judges, back arching gracefully and her chin lifting with confidence before she turned to the low bar and honed her focus on the cylindrical bit of fiberglass she trusted to hold her weight and allow her to perform superhuman feats. The cheers from her teammates were echoing in the cavernous building.

She swung up onto the low bar and Sasha stayed silent, breathing in and out slowly as with perfectly pointed toes, legs straight and body floating, she swung through the bars with a level of ease you just couldn't teach. Thirty five seconds according to his internal clock and she hit a perfect handstand out of a pirouette on the high bar before swinging down and off the bar up into a full-in, opening up her body to land with her chest up and not even the flicker of a step.

"Yes!" he yelled clenching his hands into fists and pumping them into the air as she saluted the judges and then ran towards him, jumping off the podium and into his arms. His entire body jolted as hers collided into him, her head tucking neatly into the crook of his neck, his arms enfolding her tightly. There was something about this moment, something that told him their decisions, big and small since they'd come into each other's lives had led them to a victory where perhaps something else had been fated. Instead, she'd likely secured a gold on uneven bars at these National, hopefully the first of many they'd win together.

"Fantastic," he murmured into her hair, inhaling the scene of her shampoo and chalk before finally pulling away, tiny crackles of their electric connection still tingling where the soft skin of her cheek had brushed against his neck.

She smiled up at him widely and then waited for his corrections, but he just shook his head. Tomorrow they could worry about that, as far as he was concerned, that routine was perfect.

Payson broke her personal in-competition rule and let her eyes flicker to the scoreboard when a cheer rippled through the crowd. The other events had just started up and it could only be for one thing, her score. She wasn't competing all-around, but glancing up at the All Around leaderboard for the day's competition, she allowed herself to watch her name slip into the top spot with a 15.6 beside it. For just this moment, she was officially the best gymnast in the United States.

Sasha's hand slid to her shoulder, squeezing lightly and she turned to him, seeing his eyes were locked on her name at the top of the score board. "Stay focus," he murmured. "Prep for beam."

Payson nodded, putting at the tape on her wrists and letting her grips fall loose, before wrapping them up and placing them into her bag.

"Come on, KP!" she yelled, turning to watch Kelly's routine.

She mumbled Kelly's skills to herself as the other girls in the Team Colorado rotation cheered on KP. A small smile started to pull at her mouth. Female gymnasts were generally considered to either be bad sports or so uber focused on their own routines that they didn't have the time or inclination to cheer on their friends, but Emily was leaning on the platform near the chalk bowl yelling, "Nice!" when Kelly hit a skill and Kaylie, giving her a long, drawn out, "Good!" at every handstand. And finally Lauren yelled, "STICK!" as Kelly released into her dismount and landed on both feet before saluting the judges.

It was a really good routine, but Payson's brow furrowed when she saw the tight smile plastered across Kelly's face. It was the practiced smile Sheila favored over the genuine one she'd come to know in the last few months.

"Are you okay?" she asked after Kelly had moved off the podium and sat herself down in one of the chairs lining the walls of the competition area.

"Yeah," Kelly said, shaking her head. "Stupid ankle."

"Sasha," Payson called to him and only a second ticked by before he was by her side, his concerned frown matching hers as they looked down at Kelly.

"It's fine," Kelly said. "Just a little twinge on the dismount. I'll have one of the trainers wrap it tight before beam."

Sasha nodded and moved away as they flashed Kelly's score up, a 15 on the dot. Payson took a seat beside her teammate.

"Come on, Kaylie. Let's go," KP yelled, attacking the tape that held her grips tightly on her wrists as Kaylie waiting for the green flag from the judges.

"Nice routine," Lauren said as she stood beside them, using a small chunk of chalk on her own grips. She'd go up next.

"Thanks," Kelly said.

"Congrats on bars," Lauren added to Payson, "and enjoy your silver on beam."

Payson smiled serenely. Lauren had been trying to beat her on beam for years, the attempt at a psychout was actually kind of nice. Looking around quickly to make sure the cameras and boom mics were pointed elsewhere, Payson said, "You're a lot of things Lauren, but you're not better than me on beam."

"We'll see."

"We will," Payson agreed as the green flag went up for Kaylie.

Kaylie swung to her routine, a virtual carbon copy of the set she'd performed on day one as the rest of them moved back and forth between cheering for their understandably distracted teammate and holding their breath during her more difficult skills.

"Come on, Kaylie," Emily yelled out just before her dismount and she flung herself off the high bar into a perfectly arched double layout, landing with her chest up and a smile on her face. The arena erupted, most of them understanding just how crazy Kaylie's life had been in the last day. Kaylie Cruz was always a crowd favorite, but today it seemed, they would will her through her routines with their support.

"Nice job, Kaylie!" Lauren said, running forward and hugging her quickly before she moved up onto the podium.

"Remember Lauren, find your zen and let your body take over," Darby called. Lauren nodded as she chalked her grips again and waited.

Payson had almost forgotten the other coach was with them. "Great set, Kaylie," she said to her teammate after Sasha had congratulated her.

"Thanks Pay," she said, shooting her a small smile and knocking her fist against the one Payson offered her.

"Excellent rotation ladies," he said, as they waiting for Kaylie's score. "Prep for beam, stay focused. Kelly let me see that wrapping." He sat down beside the defending National Champion and pulled her foot into his lap, examining the job the NGO trainer had done.

"It's good, Sasha," Kelly said bringing her leg back down, just as Kaylie's score appeared on the board. "Oh! Nice job, Cruz. Same as Day one!" She held out a fist for Kaylie as well and they bumped knuckles.

"Come on, Lo," Kaylie said, moving back toward the podium to stand beside Emily as Lauren swung up onto the bars, powering through her routine with aggression, if not precision. Lauren missed her handstands, but didn't fall and spun off the high bar into her own double layout, taking just a small hop forward.

"Yes, Lolo! Awesome!" Darby cheered, as Lauren leapt down from the podium and right into a hug of temporary coach.

Payson bit her lip considering. There still hadn't been a decision handed down by the NGO regarding Marty, but that it was taking so long as news enough. Marty would probably be suspended and what then? Who would coach Lauren and Emily between Nationals and Worlds selection? Darby?

She came back to herself as Lauren came flying towards her, hugging her tight. Payson laughed, more at the theatrics Lauren was putting on for the camera than joy at the other girl's routine. "Nice job, Lo."

"Thanks, Payson," she said, pulling away and moving right to KP for a hug as well who obliged, barely.

"Come on now, Emily! FInish us off strong!" Payson said, turning her attention to Emily up on the podium waiting for Lauren's score to be posted.

The taller girl hovered awkwardly near the chalk bowl waiting and Payson saw the tension beginning to build in her shoulders. Darby was still over with Lauren going over her routine. Taking a step closer, she was about to go help out the other girl when Sasha moved into her view, standing up against the raised platform and getting Emily's attention. She couldn't hear him over Colleen Evans's floor music, but she could read his lips well enough to make out the words "breathe" and "you can do this."

Emily nodded at Sasha as the green flag went up. "I got this," she said, before moving to the bars.

Across the podium Payson made eye contact with Sasha and smiled at him widely. Maybe it was thanks to their conversation the day before, or maybe despite it, but he matched her smile with one of his own and held her gaze for a moment before the telltale squeak of the bars drew their collective attention to Emily.

"Great job!" Darby said as a score of 14.8 popped up, hugging Emily tightly.

"Good work, Emily," Sasha added once Darby released her. "Excellent on the dismount, but a little tighter with your core on those handstands and you would have broke 15."

Emily blinked up at him struck silent. "Thanks," she said, as if unsure she should take the correction at face value.

Sasha's eyes drifted up to the Day Two leaderboard and nodded, it was just as he'd thought sitting in the lobby that morning:

1\. KEELER, Payson - 15.6

2\. PARKER, Kelly - 15

3\. ECHOLLS, Tasha - 14.9

4\. KMETKO, Emily - 14.8

5\. GRANGER, Courtney - 14.7

6\. CRUZ, Kaylie - 14.5

7\. ATCHINSON, Beth - 14.4

8\. EVANS, Colleen - 14.3

9\. CONWAY, Andrea - 14.2

9\. TANNER, Lauren - 14. 2

Then he looked over to the overall standings, including the prior day's totals:

1\. PARKER, Kelly - 74.8

2\. CONWAY, Andrea - 73.3

2\. TANNER, Lauren - 73.3

4\. ATCHINSON, Beth - 73.1

5\. GRANGER, Courtney - 72.9

6\. KMETKO, Emily - 72.9

7\. EVANS,Colleen - 72.5

8\. ECHOLLS, Tasha - 72.4

9\. CRUZ, Kaylie - 72.3

10\. WALTERS, Lindsay - 70.8

Kelly was right where she should be. She'd lose some of her lead on Lauren Tanner if they both hit beam, but floor would be where she set herself apart. Payson's beam routine, again should she hit, would secure a second gold at Nationals and right now his only concern with Kaylie was getting through the competition without her losing herself mentally.

They marched to beam as a group, the same way they'd marched out of that hotel. Sasha scanned over the faces of these five girls and his brain started working over relative strengths and weaknesses. He could see it as clear as day, team finals in London with these five, three up - three count. London was a long way away, but with a few upgrades here and there, keeping those upgrades consistent….it could happen.

The girls didn't waste any time when they got to the beam saluting the judges and warming up.

Kelly moved quickly through two parts of her beam routine and dismounted with a simple layout as Kaylie, who would be second to go, jumped up next.

"Pain?" he asked.

"It's okay," she said, rolling it back and forth as she stood beside him.

Sasha frowned. He'd feel better about it if they weren't headed to the events most likely to pound on her ankle.

Then the warm-up was over and barely before he could blink, Kelly was through a hit routine, nary a wobble in sight, with just a hop on the landing of her two and a half twist dismount where there'd been a stick the day before.

She hadn't given the judges much to ponder over and quickly her score of a 15 blinked next to her name.

"Let's go now, Kaylie," Sasha said, walking up onto the podium with her. Some gymnasts needed their coach's present before a big routine. "It's just you and the beam. You can do this."

"I can do this," Kaylie repeated and offered him two fists to bump before he turned and left her as the green flag went up.

She could do it, indeed. Sasha raised to fists high into the air and yelled, "YES!" as Kaylie made her way through her routine. There were still problems, a lack of difficulty and combination work, but she'd stayed on the beam and done so with a confidence he hadn't yet seen in her.

"Great job, Kaylie," he said as she jogged down the stairs beaming at him.

They stood together and waited, Payson coming over along with Kelly, holding Kaylie's hands tight. Then as one, their shoulders deflated when a 14.5, the same score she'd received for a far less confidence routine on day one popped up. Kaylie let out a harsh breath and Sasha turned to her. "That score is bullshit. You were fantastic. Keep it going on floor and make those judges give you more."

Kaylie nodded firmly and with a fire in her eyes he hadn't seen before. "I will."

The two Denver Elite girls would perform on beam before Payson would round out the rotation with her final event of these Nationals. She was sitting in a split between the wall separating the crowd from the competition and the beam podium. Sasha sat in the chair behind her and placed his hands on her back, pushing as she leaned forward. "More," she told him as her body flattened out against the floor. He grabbed one arm and pulled it around for her and then the other before releasing them both and pushing even harder into her back. He watched her toes point and flex and point again, still in a full split. Then finally he released her.

"You still trust that I made the right call?" he asked as he sat back.

"We made the right call," she said, sitting up fully and turning, criss-crossing her feet beneath her. "If I thought it was the wrong call I would have fought you harder and I would have won."

Sasha stared at her, trying to keep the awe out of his expression at the simple truth she'd just spoken. "Good," he said.

"Good," she said as the crowd near them exploded in cheers for the end of Lauren's beam routine.

Sasha watched her congratulate Lauren, who'd just posted a 15.6 and moved into second place overall, .9 behind Kelly Parker. Then he turned his attention to Emily Kmetko who was standing beside the beam her hands shaking. He tried to move closer and get her attention to calm her down like he had prior to bars, but the green flag went up and she began her routine.

Everything went wrong almost the second Emily mounted the beam with a split mount. She raised herself out of the split and wobbled just a bit simply standing up before moving into her first skill, an L-turn. Sasha knew as she began what should be a simple spin that her balance would good as soon as she raised her leg and it did, sending her torso out of alignment and forcing her to jump down before she fell off onto the mat. The crowd groaned, but then applauded as Emily set herself and jumped back onto the four inches, clearly angry as she worked through some arm choreography. The rest of the routine was a hit, as apparently Emily worked best when pissed as all hell, but the damage had been done and after a long wait, a 12.9 was posted beside her name, sending her into ninth place and nearly a point behind Kaylie.

Sasha turned to Payson, concerned that perhaps the fall would rattle her, but he could only describe her as serene as she moved past him and up the stairs to complete the rotation. She raised her arms to the judges with a smile. Then with a round off arabian to a handstand, she mounted the beam. The other rotations had already finished competing and silence reigned as Payson worked through her routine, many of her old skills, like her double flic-flac into layout, still impressing the crowd, but the new ones taking their collective breath away, especially her triple turn, followed by her combination of an L-turn, followed by a single pirouette and then straight into a double turn, finishing with a split leap, having traveled the entirety of the beam like a ballerina on stage.

Then finally she set herself and with two back handsprings launched into the air, a half turn into a double front that she stuck cold, clicking her heels together and then raising her arms in salute of the judges and the crowd. Again, where the judges would find deductions, Sasha couldn't say, but he didn't have time to think about it as his arms were soon full of Payson Keeler.

She wouldn't be the all around champion, but he opened his eyes just in time to see her name slide up to the top of the day's leaderboard, nearly a point and a half ahead of the rest of the girls who'd already completed two events that day. Rio was only three months away and between now and then there would be no doubt, Payson Keeler was the favorite to win it all.


	22. Chapter 21

Payson pulled on the bottom of her Rock warmups and folded over the waistband so they sat comfortably on her hips, but tossed her jacket over her bag, her leo keeping her plenty warm enough after the adrenaline rush of her beam routine, a second event victory, another gold medal to bring home, if not that one she'd originally dreamed of.

"Great job, Payson," Lindsay Walters, a bars specialist who'd just barely missed the National Team cut the year before said, putting her bag down on one of the chairs that lined the competition area. About the same height as Payson and rail thin, Lindsay had competed against her back in Minnesota. Though they hadn't trained in the same gym, they'd come up through the Junior Olympic levels together before turning elite.

"Thanks Lindsay, you too," Payson said giving the other girl a quick hug, before she was ushed away by her coach towards the beam. A quick glance at the scoreboard confirmed that Lindsay had in fact done a great job, sitting in 10th place All Around, and second on bars, with just Andrea Conway likely to pass her before the competition was over. Being top three on bars was something that could get an athlete on the Worlds' team, no matter how low her All Around standing.

The other girls in her rotation were warming up their tumbling, crisscrossing the floor with round off back handsprings into double pikes and double backs . Her eyes zeroed in on Kelly who threw her two and a half twist, but then took a tentative step out of it and walked off the mat, down the stairs and back towards her. The klaxon rang and the rest of the girls finished up their final passes.

"You okay?" Payson asked her, out of the side of her mouth knowing the cameras and boom mics were hovering close.

"Fine," Kelly said, sitting down on the ground, extending her legs out in front of her and rotating her ankles with her toes pointed.

Payson looked around for Sasha, but he was standing near the raised floor with Kaylie, who would go first as soon as the judges were ready. A flick of Kelly's fingers against the swishy material of her tracksuit pants made her look down. "It's fine," Kelly said. "No need to rat me out to Belov."

"If you're sure," Payson said, hesitating.

"I'm sure I'm about to clinch this damn thing," Kelly gritted out and knocked her fists against her legs to keep her muscles loose even while sitting.

Feeling something akin to jealousy clench in her chest, Payson nodded and moved closer to the floor just as the head judge gave Kaylie the green flag. Sasha stepped back and perhaps sensing her presence stopped beside her, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Let's go, Kaylie!" Payson shouted as her friend saluted the judges and moved out into the floor. The same cheers echoed out from the crowd before a low beep and Kaylie's floor music starting up, a techno jam that had the audience clapping along as soon as it burst through the speakers.

From the moment she launched into her first tumbling pass, the double arabian Sasha had insisted upon when he arrived, and Kaylie landed perfectly, her feet sticking to the carpet like glue despite the springs beneath it. The routine was picture perfect, even the front handspring, front full, front layout combination in her second pass that usually ended in a three tenth step. Payson reached out and grabbed Sasha's forearm and a quick glance up allowed her to see the smile on his face. Kaylie was owning the floor.

"Yeah, Kaylie!" Lauren yelled, from just beside Payson, startling her a bit. "Finish it up!"

In the corner furthest from them, Kaylie set herself and then ran into a round off back handspring double pike, sticking it cold and then dancing her way down to the floor to finish, blowing a cheeky kiss to the judges as the music ended.

The crowd erupted, completely uninterested in the other three events going on, focused solely on the girl who stood up, saluted and then waved to them wildly. Gymnastics fans could be the most critical sports fans in the world, but they were also fiercely protective of their own and in this moment, Kaylie Cruz belonged to them and not the media determined to make a circus of her life.

Lauren hugged her as they passed on the stairs, Kaylie on her way down from and Lauren on her way up to the floor.

Just a few moments later, a 15 popped up on the scoreboard next to Kaylie's name and the crowd, along with the other girls in their rotation whooped in delight. That would probably push Kaylie into the top three on floor, maybe even a silver.

"Here we go, Lolo!" Darby called, moving up to where Sasha and Payson were standing.

Lauren's swanky, burlesque style music echoed into the rafters as she pranced across the floor, whipping her arms around and racing across the diagonals, a full in, a double back, a two and a half twist and a double pike to end, sticking each one cold. Clearly Lauren Tanner had been peaked to perfection for Nationals.

Lauren hugged Darby tightly as she ran down from the floor, squealing in excitement at a great routine. However, Payson's eye was drawn to Emily hesitating at the bottom of the stairs, so she quickly nudged Darby in the side. After a confused look to Payson, who nodded towards Emily she pulled away from Lauren and moved over to Emily to give her a few words of encouragement.

Rolling her eyes, she met Sasha's gaze and was met with an eyeroll from him as well, but they both held back comment as Lauren stayed next to them waiting for her score. Payson looked up at the scoreboard and nodded in agreement when Lauren's 14.7 was posted.

"Nice job, Lo," Payson said, meaning it. If Lauren could maintain the level of gymnastics she showed at these Nationals until Worlds, she'd easily make the team.

Lauren hugged her quickly before heading back towards where Kaylie sat, back where Kelly was still stretching out.

"The girl can tumble," Sasha said as Emily's routine began and she launched straight into a tumbling pass to the rock music blaring through the arena, heavy guitar and drums playing out to the rhythm of her path across the floor.

"Madam Viola would be outraged at that dance though," Payson said, more as a compliment than anything else.

Sasha chuckled, reaching out to put a hand on her shoulder, her far shoulder, his wrist light against the back of her neck. The touch calming, even as a shiver passed through her from the contact.

"Let's go, Emily, you got this!" Lauren said, coming up beside them with Kelly and Kaylie just a step behind her.

"Come on, Emily!" Payson joined in as Sasha's hand dropped and he clapped as Emily set herself in the corner of the floor for her final pass, a double pike, she finished on her feet with just a small controlled lunge back and the music cut abruptly.

Lauren was the first person to meet her as she came down the stairs, perhaps a little too enthusiastically to be considered genuine, but then, it was Lauren.

"Nice playground routine, Kmetko," Kelly said, but with a smile on her face that Emily matched as the defending National Champion moved past her and up the stairs to round out their floor rotation.

Emily's score lit up the board a moment later, a 14.7, matching Lauren's mark and putting her into eighth place, safely within the AA margin to make the National Team, despite the fall. They only had vault left and while it wasn't Emily's strength, Payson did some quick math in her head, it should be enough to keep her in the top ten as long as she didn't fall.

For a moment, one of the many over the weekend, Payson felt a pang in her chest. If she'd been competing All Around this weekend, she'd be up next. Even with a watered down routine, she'd probably be over a point ahead of Kelly and the other girls near the top of the leaderboard and her vault would have probably pushed her lead to two points. She could have won this, but she knew Sasha was right. The goal wasn't to peak here and now, the goal wasn't even to win the All Around National Championship, as nice as that would have been. The goal was to be the best in the world. The best ever. Still, as Kelly saluted the judges and moved onto the floor to start her routine, it friggin' hurt.

"Come on, KP!" she yelled, trying to tamp down the jealousy. She'd just channel her negative energy into cheering her teammates through their final routines of the weekend.

"Urg, I still can't believe you're friends with her," Lauren said.

"Weirder things have happened," Payson said, under her breath.

"Like me winning an All Around medal and you...not," Lauren shot at her, nodding to her name currently in first place on the board because both Kelly and Andrea Conway hadn't competed in the third rotation yet.

Payson smiled, though her back teeth clenched. "Don't get used to it."

Whatever Lauren's reply would have been, it was drowned out by the sudden burst of Kelly's music through the speakers. After striking a quick pose near the corner of the floor, Kelly ran straight into her first tumbling run, a double layout, which she landed a tad short, crunching down on her lower half a bit as she hopped forward to steady herself. Payson winced in sympathy. Kelly's ankle was probably stinging from that landing as she danced a bit and hit her leaps series before settling in another corner and taking off into a round off back handspring to a ...what was supposed to be a two and a half twist to sissone leap, but instead Kelly had thrown a full-in, landing and taking a small bouncing hop out of it, cushioning the landing.

"Her ankle," Payson muttered and her eyes flashed up to Sasha. The full-in was performed tucked and would give Kelly a little more time to land than the layout two and a half twist.

The next tumbling run was what was supposed to be her final, a double pike, again, avoiding the twisting motion, giving her time to open up and land. More dance proceeded the last tumbling pass. Payson wracked her brain, wondering if Kelly would just throw a simple double back instead of that two and a half twist.

Kelly settled into the corner, taking a deep breath and then she took a couple of running steps, into a round off, back handspring and Payson's eyes widened as she flipped into a two and a half twist. Kelly's feet landed, but then her ankle buckled and her momentum carried her forward, but clearly in pain, she didn't leap into the sissone. Instead, she stumbled towards the corner, one step, two and then completely out of bounds. Kelly managed to get back onto the floor, just as her music ended and struck a finishing pose, but the damage had been done. Payson's sharp eye had counted nearly seven tenths of a deduction on that landing alone.

"Is she limping?" Kaylie asked, under her breath as Kelly made her way back toward them.

"Shit," Sasha muttered, moving towards the stairs to help her down. Payson followed and they stood on either side of the stairs as Kelly got to them and it was a testament to how much pain she was in when she took each of their offered hands and let them support most of her weight down the four steps that led down to the floor.

Sasha lifted Kelly's arm over his own shoulders and Payson stepped back to clear the way towards the chairs, but waved the trainer over. Kelly was a master at acting the part, even though pain, but despite that, the agony on her face was clear as day to Payson and everyone else in the arena.

Sasha allowed the trainer to examine Kelly's ankle and he even allowed the man to spray it with an numbing agent before it was rewrapped to keep it stable. His eyes flew to the scoreboard as an murmur of concern came from the crowd. A 14.4. Kelly's name slid to the top of the All Around leaders, but her margin was much smaller than he'd anticipated.

1\. PARKER, Kelly - 104.2

2\. TANNER, Lauren - 103.6

3\. CONWAY, Andrea - 102.8

4\. EVANS, Colleen - 102.7

5\. ATCHINSON, Beth - 102.6

6\. GRANGER, Courtney - 102.5

7\. ECHOLLS, Tasha - 101.7

8\. CRUZ, Kaylie - 101.1

9\. KMETKO, Emily - 100.4

10\. WALTERS, Lindsay - 100.0

Just six tenths of a point separated her from Lauren Tanner and with Andrea Conway headed to bars, both girls were well within closing distance if Kelly didn't compete her double twisting Yurchenko. Unless she couldn't compete at all.

"How are you?" he said, after they'd marched from floor to vault and she'd avoided warming up more than a simple timer while the other girls moved from timers to their competition vaults.

"I can hit one vault."

"You didn't want to do the two and a half on floor for good reason, Kelly," he reminded her. "A double twist on vault is not going to feel good."

They paused their conversation as Lauren led off on the vault, hitting a solid double twisting Yurchenko with just a small step back on the landing.

Kelly was a smart cookie. She could do math as well as he could, especially when Lauren's score went up, a 14.8. "If I don't do it, then I won't win." Her eyes flickered towards the stands where he assumed Sheila Baboyan was sitting, watching them like a hawk. "I have to win and I can do one vault to get there."

"If you do the one and a half, it'll give you more time to open up."

Shaking her head. "I've only been training the double. I'm more likely to over-rotate the one and a half or look like I did on that last floor pass. It'll be sloppy and they'll deduct. I've been sticking my double all week. I can do it."

Emily went next with her solid, but low scoring Yurchenko full.

Sasha turned back to Kelly. He didn't know how to get through to her, not like he had with Payson. She was a little bit older, a little bit more aware of her own gymnastics mortality, knowing nothing was guaranteed, she wanted to win when she could. "I don't doubt you can do it, Kelly. I don't want you to further damage your ankle. A sprain now could be a tear after one vault."

The crowd was suddenly ooh-ing in awe and they both focused across the arena as Andrea Conway swung up to the high bar with a Shaposhnikova, almost as well executed as Payson, before one, two, three giants had her swinging off the bars into a double layout dismount, stuck cold. The crowd, especially near the bars exploded. It was a hit routine, for sure. Conway was a good all-arounder, but her strength was bars and if she hit her routine, then she'd likely closed the gap even further between her and Kelly.

Taking a deep breath and another glance towards the stands, Kelly then looked up at him, dead in the eye and said, "I have to do this."

With those words, she stood up and moved past him, not giving him more than a split second to stop her. She was up the stairs and waiting for the judges when Conway's score went up, sliding her in behind Lauren Tanner.

Sasha's eyes flickered to the scoreboard one last time.

1\. TANNER, Lauren - 118.4

2\. CONWAY, Andrea - 118.2

Then he felt Payson at his side, her shoulder brushing his bicep, crossing her arms over her chest as Kelly set her set at the end of the run, staring down the vault table. "She needs to stick it," Payson murmured.

As Kelly began her run, Sasha inhaled and then held his breath, exhaled as she hit the springboard and then the horse. He knew immediately the result wouldn't be good. She was uncontrolled in the air, having overcompensated because of her ankle, pushing through the pain. She landed awkwardly, having to lunge forward once and then twice, before she managed to hop herself into a stand still more than halfway across the vault landing mat. Then she lifted her arms in the air at the same time she bent her right leg, taking all her weight off the ankle. Sasha hadn't even realized he was sprinting down towards her until he was halfway up the stairs. He helped her off the mat and down to the floor, the trainers converging on them within seconds.

"Oh God," Kelly said, finally sitting down and holding on to her ankle, tears brimming in her eyes.

"Okay, easy," he said, holding her by the shoulders, but then shaking his head. The trainers couldn't help her on the mats. He slid his arm beneath her legs and hefted her into his arms before standing and carrying her down the steps and to a chair against the wall.

"It's her Achilles," the trainer said.

"No shit," Kelly shot back, in full hearing of the cameras and boom mics.

Sasha snorted. "How about we get her an x-ray before we declare her Achilles DOA?" he snapped at the trainers.

The crowd around them applauded politely and he glanced up to see Kelly's score. A 14.1 and a 118.3 for her two day total. Second place.

A shriek echoed from the opposite end of the vault run and he saw Lauren Tanner hugging Darby Conrad like her life depended upon it. Kaylie still had to vault, but there was no question, as a camera focused in on a close-up of the celebrating pair. Lauren Tanner was the 2010 US National All Around Champion.

"We've got her, Coach," the NGO trainer said and Sasha nodded, stepping away as they loaded Kelly into a wheelchair to take her to the waiting ambulance, where an x-ray and a cast surely awaited her at the hospital. He needed to set up the springboard for Kaylie, but he was loathe to leave Kelly. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Payson already at the table, moving the pad and the springboard into place and looking down to the other end of the run and getting a thumbs up from Kaylie.

"Go," Payson said, running back down the stairs as Kaylie got the green flag and saluted.

"Thank you," he said, and followed Kelly out of the arena as he heard the telltale sounds of feet pounding down the runway, hitting the board and then the table and the thwack of the mat before the crowd reaction, measured applause and cheering.

The klaxon sounded and the announcer called, "That concludes our final day of competition here at the National Gymnastics Championships! Please stay for the medal ceremonies and the naming of your USA Gymnastics National Team!"

Chaos. Yelling, confusion, a crowd of bodies, exultant or devastated, near where the vault run met the floor exercise podium. That was the scene after the end of Nationals. Payson stood, her back against the raised platform, waiting for her name to be called. The vault medalists went up first, Courtney Granger, Colleen Evans and Kristen Hunniford, finishing first, second and third respectively, but also the only girls to have competed two vaults and thus the winners by default.

"Uneven bars medalists," Regina Turner, one of the NGO committee members and a former national champion herself, motioning to Payson to stand between Andrea Conway and Lindsay Walters as the vault girls came back down to the holding area, medals around their necks.

"And now your uneven bars medalists!" the announcer called and Payson followed Lindsay up the stairs and onto the floor. Inspiring music played in the background as Ellen Beals and Marcus McGowan waited just off to the side with their medals.

"In third place from Twin Lakes Gymnastics, Lindsay Walters!"

Lindsay moved onto the lowest platform, waving to the crowd before accepting her medal.

"In second place from Boston Elite, Andrea Conway!"

Andrea moved around to hug Lindsay before standing on the second highest platform.

"And in first place, your 2010 Uneven Bars National Champion, from the Rocky Mountain Gymnastics Training Center, Payson Keeler!"

Payson jogged to the front of the medal podium and gave a quick hug to both Andrea and Lindsay before stepping up onto the top of the gold medal platform and leaning down for Ellen Beals to hang the gold medal, one of two she'd be receiving in the next few minutes.

"Excellent job, Payson. Can't wait to see those bars in Rio," Ellen said with a wink and a smile.

After another moment waving to the crowd, they moved back down into the chaos, but Payson was put into the center of the lineup again, this time for beam with Lauren behind her, but no bronze medalist to lead her up to the podium. Kelly should have been there to get her beam medal, but instead she was at the hospital, hopefully being told her ankle was nothing more than a bad sprain.

A second gold around her neck, Payson smiled and let herself enjoy the moment as she stood atop that podium. This feeling, that's what made all of it worth while.

Then it was over and she was back in the well with the rest of the girls, both those who'd made the national team and those who hadn't, watching the hilarity of the floor exercise medals as Kaylie was awarded her surprise gold on the event and four other athletes, Kelly, Lauren, Emily and Courtney, had finished just a tenth of a point behind her for silver.

"And now, you're All Around medalists!" the announcer called. "In third place, from Boston Elite, Andrea Conway! In second place, from Rocky Mountain Gymnastics Training Center, Kelly Parker! We wish Miss Parker well and hope she's back on the competition floor soon and finally your 2010 All Around Gold Medalist, your National Champion from Denver Elite Gymnastics, Lauren Tanner!"

The arena erupted and Payson applauded with all the other girls. It was a stunner, to be sure. In any other year, Lauren would have finished third at best, but it wasn't about what could have happened or even what should have happened. Lauren had been healthy and peaked at just the right time, taking advantage of Payson's absence and Kelly's injury.

Payson train of thought was broken as a set of warmups was shoved into her hands. Regina Turner was shouting out names from a list and then finally, "National Team girls, put on these warm-ups!"

The inspiring music was playing on a loop, a tune that would surely remain in all their heads for days, even when they returned home to train.

"And now your 2010 USA Gymnastics National Team!" the announcer began. "Beth Atchinson! Andrea Conway! Kaylie Cruz! Tasha Echolls! Colleen Evans! Courtney Granger! Kristen Henniford! Payson Keeler! Emily Kmetko! Kelly Parker! Lauren Tanner and Lindsay Walters! These young women will be representing the United States of America in International Competition and at the World Championships this fall in Rio!"

Payson felt her blood fire through her veins as she got into line and walked up the stairs and out onto the floor. Her second senior National Team, her sixth overall. This should feel like old hat, but it didn't. There was something special about the NGO recognizing you as the cream of the elite crop, one of the best gymnasts in the world and worthy of the USA emblazoned on the jackets.

Then it was over. The lights came up in the arena as the crowd began to disperse. She gathered her things with her teammates and shouldered her gym bag.

"Payson!" Regina called, a handful of medals and an extra set of warmups tucked under her arm. "I heard you and Kelly Parker are sharing a room. I think Sasha went with her to the hospital, could you make sure she gets these?"

"Of course," she said, taking them and then looking to Kaylie, Emily and Lauren, all of them in their matching USA warmups, their medals around their necks, Lauren's beam silver clanking against the All Around gold Payson had coveted for herself. "Well, are you guys coming?" she asked and they all smiled.

The sterilized scent of the hospital pervaded through the air as they entered Boston General's emergency room. Payson spotted Sheila Baboyan across the waiting area, cell phone glued to her ear.

"Of course she's just fine. Barely more than a sprain. She'll absolutely be ready for Worlds," Sheila said to whomever was on the other end of the line.

Payson pursed her lips, not believing a word of it. She'd seen the pain on Kelly's face. Her eyes traveled over the waiting area, landing on a man with broad shoulders and blond hair sitting in one of the hard backed plastic chairs.

"Sasha," she breathed and somehow he heard her, standing and shooting them all a wan smile.

"How is she?" Emily asked, beating her to it.

"It's a small tear, but it'll require rehab," Sasha said, rubbing a tired palm over his jaw. "I'm not sure if they'll let all of you through."

"Excuse me!" Lauren said, stopping a harried looking young doctor, a man who looked maybe five minutes older than them, despite the white coat. "We're the USA Gymnastics National Team and one of our teammates was injured in competition. She won some medals and she was named to the team. Is there anyway we could be let through to see her?" The brand new national champion batted her eyelashes and the doctor's eyes flickered over the group of them.

A few minutes later, they quietly, as they'd be instructed by the doctor, made their way into the ER and found Kelly sitting on a table near the far end of the room. Her leg was elevated, packed in ice and her mouth was twisted into a scowl, but then she saw them and brightened.

"You are kidding me," she said, shaking her head back and forth.

"Well we're teamies now," Payson said, shooting her a fake, bright smile, the same way Kelly had in their first days training together. "Brought you a present."

"Presents," Kaylie corrected.

Payson held out the National Team warmup and the three medals Kelly had won, more than any of the rest of them.

"Two silvers and a bronze," Lauren said, ever so helpfully.

Payson rolled her eyes. "You did good, Parker."

Maybe it was the pain killers or maybe the moment really did overwhelm her, but Kelly shook her head and smiled. "No, we did good. Way to kick some ass, guys."

Payson smiled and looked around at the four other girls, a sense of rightness settling over her. Nationals were over, but the road to London had just begun and they were going to travel down it, together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Final Results:
> 
> Vault:
> 
> Gold: Courtney Granger
> 
> Silver: Colleen Evans
> 
> Bronze: Kristne Henniford
> 
> Uneven Bars:
> 
> Gold: Payson Keeler
> 
> Silver: Andrea Conway
> 
> Bronze: Lindsay Walters
> 
> Beam:
> 
> Gold: Payson Keeler
> 
> Silver: Lauren Tanner
> 
> Bronze: Kelly Parker
> 
> Floor:
> 
> Gold:Kaylie Cruz
> 
> Silver: Kelly Parker, Lauren Tanner, Emily Kmetko, Courtney Granger
> 
> All-Around:
> 
> Gold: Lauren Tanner
> 
> Silver: Kelly Parker
> 
> Bronze: Andrea Conway
> 
> 4th: Colleen Evans
> 
> 5th: Courtney Granger
> 
> 6th: Beth Atchinson
> 
> 7th: Kaylie Cruz
> 
> 8th: Tasha Echolls
> 
> 9th: Emily Kmetko
> 
> 10th: Lindsay Walters

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Some of you may have seen my work at that OTHER fanfic site. For those of you who haven't, yes, this is exactly what it sounds like. It's a reboot of the entire series. No I'm not joking and yes, it might kill me. Despite this prologue being from Marty's point of view, after the prologue we will only be hearing from Payson and Sasha.
> 
> I have the first arc of the story, through Nationals, planned out for the most part and I'm really excited about it. So, what do you guys think is going to happen? Emily and Lauren at Denver Elite with Marty and Payson and Kaylie at the Rock, with no coach at all. Predictions? Frustrations? Hopes? Let me know what you think and settle in, this is going to be a bumpy ride.


End file.
